- US Ambassador Sergio Gor began a two-day Ladakh visit with private sightseeing in the Himalayas
- This is the first top US diplomat visit to Ladakh since it became a separate union territory in 2019
- The US supported India after 2020 Galwan clashes and provided strategic defense assistance
US ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, began his two-day Ladakh tour with some "sightseeing" - away from cameras in the Himalayan region. This is the first visit of any top US diplomat to Ladakh after the region was carved out as a separate union territory in 2019 and a subsequent protracted standoff between the Indian Army and Chinese PLA following clashes at Galwan in June 2020.
Gor's Ladakh visit is being closely watched since the US had strongly backed India after the Galwan clashes in June 2020, in which 20 Indian Army soldiers were killed. US had condemned China's attempt to change the status quo at the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh and helped India with real-time intelligence and high-altitude gear for soldiers as part of a strategic defence partnership between the two countries.
In a big shout-out to India's stated position on Jammu and Kashmir, the US ambassador called Kashmir "an important part of India". The statement rattled Pakistan and summoned the US Charge d'Affaires in Islamabad and lodged a "strong demarche" over what Pakistan called "factually incorrect remarks".
Gor, who is also US President Donald Trump's Special Envoy to South and Central Asia, met Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. "We had a very warm meeting, and we look forward to building on our relationship," Gor told the media with Abdullah standing by his side.
Hours before the US envoy arrived in Srinagar, Abdullah had sent a strong message that there will be no talks with Gor on internal matters of J&K and made it clear that India, not Washington, will decide issues faced by Jammu and Kashmir.
So far, there is no indication if the US ambassador is meeting any leader or any delegation in Ladakh. As he arrived at Leh airport, the top US diplomat was taken in a large security cavalcade.
Earlier, reports suggested that Gor was scheduled to meet Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, who is currently in Leh. But later, it was widely reported that the meeting had been cancelled even as there was no official confirmation of the supposed meeting or its cancellation.
