Infringement of sovereignty, territorial integrity 'unacceptable': India to UK after envoy's visit to PoK

New Delhi: India has lodged a strong protest with the UK over a visit to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) by its High Commissioner to Islamabad and conveyed that such "infringement" of the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity is "unacceptable".

Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra registered India's protest over the visit with the British high commissioner to India, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Saturday.

It said the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh "are, have been and shall always remain an integral part of India".

The UK's High Commissioner to Pakistan, Jane Marriott, along with a British foreign office official visited Mirpur in PoK on January 10.

"India has taken a serious note of the highly objectionable visit of the British High Commissioner in Islamabad, along with a UK Foreign Office official, to Pakistan occupied Kashmir on January 10," the MEA said in a statement.

"Such infringement of India's sovereignty and territorial integrity is unacceptable. The foreign secretary has lodged a strong protest with the British high commissioner in India on this infringement," it said.

Marriott had made a mention of her visit to Mirpur in a post on X.

"Salaam from Mirpur, the heart of the UK and Pakistan's people to people ties! 70% of British Pakistani roots are from Mirpur, making our work together crucial for diaspora interests. Thank you for your hospitality!" she wrote.

In December 2022, India strongly condemned the visit of the Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic (OIC) to POK and for his comments on Jammu and Kashmir.

In October the same year, India conveyed its objections to the US over a visit to PoK by US Ambassador to Islamabad Donald Blome.