Norway has not offered to mediate between India, Pakistan: Envoy

"PM @erna_solberg has not offered to mediate between India and Pakistan as has been erroneously reported. Norway has neither been asked nor offered to mediate," the envoy tweeted.

He was reacting to a new report by NDTV where the news channel quoted her as saying, when asked whether Norway saw any role for mediation between India and Pakistan: "If there is an interest from the partners, we will try to use the mechanisms that we know. We have been working quite a lot in different countries but we always have this one basic thinking."

"The partners need to want to sit down by the table and discuss. Then of course if there is a need for a mediator, a need for a facilitator to fix, even though these are two very big countries that should manage to sort out things between themselves," the PM said.

The PM also told the news channel that the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan could not be solved only from a military standpoint.

She said: "I don't think there is a military solution to any situation like this. I think you have to have a popular support. You have to have good trust between the partners in any region where still there is a conflict but we don't have a special meaning about whether it is a military solution in Kashmir or not. What we have learnt is that you have to bring in popular support and by getting women and youth into a peace process and that's when you build a solid peace in an area where there have been a conflict."

The Interview triggers a Twitter war:

After the envoy posted his reaction on Twitter, one  Sumeet Bhasin, whose Twitter profile says he is BJP member, posted: "Has this becoming habit of @ndtv @Nidhi to manufacture fake news on a daily basis. Time .@Ra_THORe ji initiates stringent action against such forces who just to oppose PM have sold their soul."

NDTV journalist Nidhi Razdan reacted to it and posted: "Liar. There is no manufacturing. The quotes are on TV and reported as is. I know the IT cell pays you to lie but I will call your lies out every single day."

Another netizen Krithika Sivaswamy also reacted to the development and tweeted: "So she basically says the Norwegian ambassador to India was lying ‍. #Norway."

Nidhi reacted to it and said: "No, he is not lying. He is right that she never “offered” to mediate. But she clearly said in response to a question that Norway was ready to mediate if India and Pakistan both wanted that. The comments are on TV and in print."

In another tweet, the journalist said: "Dear bhakts, as you get your knickers in a twist, this is how reporting is done. Never said Norway “offered” to mediate but exactly what is reported here : “Norway PM says will mediate on Kashmir issue only if India, Pakistan desire “ via @htTweets."

Norway PM in India:

The PM of Norway is currently visiting India from Jan 7-9.

During the visit, Prime Minister Solberg will call on Rashtrapatiji and Vice President and hold talks with the Prime Minister of India.

The External Affairs Minister will call on Prime Minister Solberg.

Prime Minister Solberg will deliver the Inaugural address at the Raisina Dialogue. She will also address India-Norway Business Summit, read a statement issued by Ministry of External Affairs.