Britain will play its due role to ensure the early and peaceful resolution of the Kashmir
problem between India and Pakistan, a British minister of Pakistani origin said on Saturday.
Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, a minister without portfolio in the new British government, made the remarks while addressing a reception hosted in her honour by the people of Mirpur in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Warsi's in-laws belong to
Mirpur.
"Britain (will) play its due role to ensure the early resolution of the Kashmir issue," Warsi was quoted as saying by state-run APP news agency.
Warsi, also chairperson of the Conservative Party, said Britain is taking was taking "necessary effective steps in connection with the resolution of the Kashmir conflict".
She called on India and Pakistan to "initiate effective steps for the early and peaceful resolution of Kashmir issue".
Abid Hussain, a leading Britain-based Kashmiri leader, chaired the ceremony in honour of Warsi. The event was also attended by British High Commissioner Adam Thomson and Kashmiri leaders like Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan and Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin of the Pakistan People's Party.
Warsi, who is on her first visit to Pakistan since she was appointed a cabinet minister, said the British government will extend assistance for the progress of PoK through cooperation in education, health and social sectors.
In their speeches, top Kashmiri leaders called on Britain to exert "every possible pressure on India for the early settlement of the Kashmir dispute".
Speakers also called for making the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir irrelevant to ensure the free movement of people. They hoped that Warsi would continue raising the issue of the early settlement of the Kashmir issue in line with the aspirations of the people.