Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again internationalised the Kashmir issue during his address at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), reiterating Ankara’s long-standing opposition to New Delhi’s policy on the region. In his statement, Erdogan called for the resolution of the Kashmir dispute “through dialogue based on UN Security Council resolutions and the aspirations of our Kashmiri brothers and sisters.”

His remarks, although not new, underscore Turkey’s consistent alignment with the terror sponsoring Pakistan’s stance on the issue and contrast sharply with India’s position that Kashmir remains an internal matter.

Erdogan’s latest intervention highlights Turkey’s persistent use of multilateral platforms to raise the Kashmir issue, despite repeated rebukes and strong diplomatic protests from India. Since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, the Turkish leadership has routinely echoed Islamabad’s concerns, often framing the dispute in terms of international obligations and alleged human rights considerations.

This internationalisation is in stark contrast to the growing global acceptance of India’s sovereignty over Jammu and Kashmir, with major powers treating it as a bilateral matter between India and Pakistan.

The invocation of “UN Security Council resolutions” in Erdogan’s speech represents a deliberate historical framing. Those resolutions date to 1948–49, passed in the aftermath of the partition and the first Indo-Pak conflict, but they have been overtaken by subsequent developments, including the bilateral Shimla Agreement of 1972 and Lahore Declaration of 1999. India has consistently maintained that all outstanding issues with Pakistan must be resolved bilaterally, ruling out any scope for third-party mediation or UN involvement. Ankara’s revival of these outdated references is seen by New Delhi as a politically motivated attempt rather than a constructive contribution.

Erdogan also employed emotive language by referring to the “aspirations” of Kashmiri people. This rhetorical device has been used to position Turkey as a supposed advocate of Muslim causes worldwide, a cornerstone of Erdogan’s foreign policy aimed at bolstering his image in the Islamic world.

However, critics point out the contradiction between his stand on Kashmir and Ankara’s suppression of Kurdish aspirations at home, an inconsistency often highlighted by India and Western nations when countering Turkey’s claims of moral authority.

For Pakistan, Erdogan’s statements are diplomatically valuable, providing Islamabad with a semblance of international backing on Kashmir at a time when most major powers have distanced themselves from the issue.

Turkey’s repeated interventions also reinforce the Ankara-Islamabad partnership, which includes growing defence cooperation involving drones, warships, and possible fighter aircraft collaborations. By internationalising Kashmir at high-profile global venues, Erdogan aligns himself with Pakistan’s efforts to spotlight the issue, even if it has yielded little tangible traction at the UN.

India is expected to strongly reject Erdogan’s remarks, as it has consistently done in the past. New Delhi views such statements as interference in internal affairs and often issues sharp rebuttals, warning Ankara against indulging in a matter that does not concern it.

In past instances, India has also leveraged its growing economic and strategic partnerships with major powers to counter Turkish narratives, isolating Ankara diplomatically on the world stage.

Erdogan’s move at the UNGA once again reflects Turkey’s strategy of aligning ideological positioning with geopolitical partnerships, even at the cost of antagonising India.

However, in an era where India’s global standing is rising due to its economic and strategic weight, Erdogan’s remarks are unlikely to influence international perceptions of Kashmir. Instead, they underline Turkey’s continued use of global Islamic solidarity narratives to consolidate domestic and regional political legitimacy.

Agencies