Former Indian Ambassador to the United States and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Rajya Sabha MP Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Friday, 21 August credited US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor with providing a 'correct perspective' on Jammu and Kashmir, praising his declaration that the Union Territory is 'an important part of India' during a visit to Srinagar earlier in the week. Shringla, a former Foreign Secretary, described the statement as 'very, very significant' — both in diplomatic weight and in the signal it sends internationally.

What Gor Said and Why It Stands Out

Sergio Gor visited Srinagar on 19 August, where he stood alongside Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and described the Union Territory as 'an important part of India.' Shringla noted that this is a categorical statement of a kind the United States has not made before. 'Their statements have been nuanced and more coloured by other factors including the fact that there is an issue in the United Nations and also, of course, their own position vis-à-vis how they look at it between India and Pakistan,' he said. 'So, one is that he made a categorical statement that is very, very significant.'

Gor's Weight Within the US Administration

Shringla was emphatic that Gor is not a conventional diplomatic appointee. 'He is a very close associate of the President of the United States. He's also Ambassador, not just in India, but he covers the whole of South and Central Asia, which means that he has a coverage of the entire region, and therefore he speaks beyond what I think would be simply as the Ambassador to India,' Shringla said. The former Foreign Secretary argued that Gor 'sees things more from a political point of view than previous diplomats, career diplomats, who have been limited in their vision,' and that he 'calibrates what he says' rather than speaking casually.

Historical Context: Past US Visits to Kashmir

Shringla drew a line of progression from earlier American engagement with the Valley. He recalled that former US Ambassadors Robert Blackwill and Kenneth Juster had visited Srinagar in 2020 alongside envoys from 14 other countries. Juster's participation at the time, Shringla said, was a 'strong manifestation' of US support for India's position on the abrogation of Article 370 and helped address concerns being raised in the US Congress. Gor's visit, he argued, represents a further, more explicit step in that trajectory.

J&K's Integration and the PoK Contrast

Shringla maintained that with the abrogation of Article 370, there is 'no more ambiguity' about the status of Jammu and Kashmir. He pointed to rising tourism, economic development, and the decision to host a G20 meeting in Srinagar — which he coordinated in his role as Chief Coordinator for India's G20 Presidency — as markers of the region's integration into the national mainstream. He described the G20 Srinagar meeting as 'a game changer.' By contrast, he highlighted ongoing protests in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), where, he said, dozens of protesters have been killed by Pakistani forces over recent months, arguing that residents of PoK 'want to come and become a part of India.'

The International Signal

Shringla concluded that Gor's statement sends a clear message beyond bilateral ties. 'I would certainly credit him with providing a perspective that is not only correct, but also both in the United States and internationally sends a strong signal that this is no longer an issue,' he said. 'This is something that countries should now recognise is not an international issue, that the whole of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.' The remarks come at a moment of heightened geopolitical attention to the region, with Gor's visit widely seen as a diplomatic endorsement of India's post-Article 370 position.