China And Turkey Likely To Skip G-20 Meet In Srinagar, Others To Have Low-Level Participation: Reports

China and Turkey might snub India by skipping an upcoming Group of 20 (G-20) meeting in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, according to reports.

The upcoming G-20 meeting in Srinagar is the first major international event in Jammu and Kashmir since 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated. With the abrogation, the special status of J&K was scrapped, the state was downgraded from to a Union Territory (UT), and it was bifurcated into two UTs of J&K and Ladakh.

Lately, Srinagar has undergone significant facelift to be at its best for the G-20 meeting. Additional security personnel, including elite commandos, have also been deployed in Srinagar to safeguard the G-20 event. 

Observers have commented that the G-20 meeting in Srinagar is India's attempt to project normalcy in the region.

China, Turkey might skip G-20 meet: Reports

The G-20 Tourism Working Group is going to have its meeting in Srinagar on May 22-24 amid tight security arrangements.

The G-20 meeting is supposed to take place at Sher-e-Kashmir International Conventional Centre (SKICC) on the banks of the Dal Lake.

While New Delhi is trying to push the narrative of normalcy in the Valley, The Hindustan Times reports that some countries are likely to skip or tone down their participation in the meeting.

"China and Turkey are among G-20 member states that won’t attend a tourism working group meeting to be held in Srinagar next week while several other countries will have low-level participation in the event, people familiar with the matter said," reports HT.

Moreover, HT reports that it's also not certain if Indonesia would participate in the meeting.

The Deccan Herald also reports that Saudi Arabia and Mexico are also expected to have low-level participation in the Srinagar meeting. 

"Saudi Arabia and Mexico are likely to be represented by diplomats from their embassies in New Delhi instead of officials from their respective capitals," sources told The Deccan Herald.

The Kashmir dispute is understood to be the reason behind such moves. While Turkey has criticised the Narendra Modi government's actions in Kashmir, Chinese actions are rooted in its all-weather friend Pakistan's opposition to the meeting taking place in Kashmir, noted HT.

G-20 countries supporting 'facade of normalcy': UN official

A United Nations (UN) official has criticised the G-20 countries for "unwittingly" supporting facade of normalcy in J&K with their participation in upcoming meeting in Srinagar.

Fernand de Varennes, the UN rapporteur on minority issues, also said in a statement that New Delhi appears to show an international "seal of approval" to constitutional changes regarding J&K.

"Human rights violations have risen dramatically in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir since 2019 when the Government of India revoked the special status of the region," The Telegraph quoted De Varennes as saying, adding that he said the 'direct rule" of Delhi had resulted in "massive rights violations including torture, extrajudicial killings, denial of political participation rights of Kashmiri Muslims and minorities" owing to "suspension of democratic rights and local elections".

The Telegraph also quoted De Varennes as saying that G-20 countries were "unwittingly providing a veneer of support to a facade of normalcy" at a time "when massive human rights violations, illegal and arbitrary arrests, political persecutions, restrictions and even suppression of free media and human rights defenders continue to escalate".

Observers have said that New Delhi is attempting to use the upcoming Srinagar meeting as a tool to show normalcy in Kashmir.

"Indian authorities are hoping the meeting will show that the controversial changes have brought “peace and prosperity” to the region," reported AP.

Political scientist Paul Staniland told AP that the G-20 meeting is "in line with Indian government policy to symbolically project normalcy and stability in Kashmir", and is unlikely to herald a change in policy.

NSG, Navy commandos deployedin Srinagar

Elite commandos have been deployed in Srinagar and schools have been shut.

"Schools at 'vulnerable' points have been closed and members of minorities, migrant workers and mainstream politicians are being put on alert in Kashmir, especially Srinagar, ahead of the G-20 Tourism Working Group meeting scheduled for next week...Meanwhile, teams of the elite National Security Guard (NSG) and MARCOS marine commandos have carried out drills ahead of the meeting in Srinagar," reports The Hindu.

The AP also reports that gun-toting commandos have been deployed in and around Srinagar's iconic Dal Lake. Visuals have also surfaced in social media.