Bangkok, August 2: India on Friday turned down US President Donald Trump’s offer for the second time about mediating in Kashmir issue. External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told US Secretary of State, Michael Pompeo, during a meeting in Bangkok that India would prefer to solve the issue with Pakistan bilaterally.  Jaishankar disclosed this information through a tweet. Donald Trump's Mediation Offer: Kashmir Bilateral Issue Between India And Pakistan, Says US in Damage Control.

The External Affairs Minister tweeted, “Have conveyed to American counterpart @SecPompeo  this morning in clear terms that any discussion on Kashmir, if at all warranted, will only be with Pakistan and only bilaterally.” The meeting was held on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit which is going on in Bangkok.

Jaishanker's Tweet:

On Thursday, Trump again offered to mediate in the Kashmir issue. The US President told the media that he could mediate in the matter if Indian and Pakistan wanted him to intervene. Earlier on July 22, Trump had claimed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also asked him to act as a mediator in the Kashmir issue.

Video of Jaishanker's Meeting With Pompeo:

However, India rejected the claims of Trump. "No such request has been made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US President," Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson of India's Ministry of External Affairs tweeted.

A day after Trump’s statement, on July 23, the US State Department clarified that Kashmir was a "bilateral" issue between India and Pakistan. The US State Department further stated that the US "welcomes" the two countries "sitting down" for talks, adding the country is "ready to assist" in the process.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 02, 2019 11:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).