India, Pakistan and Kashmiris should resolve the Kashmir issue, the European Union said on Tuesday.
"We are concerned because it [Kashmir] has been nuclear flashpoint," the head of a six-member European Union parliamentary delegation, John Cushnahan, said after his arrival in Srinagar for a three-day visit.
"People of Kashmir are the most important party to the issue because it is they who are suffering," Cushnahan, who represents Ireland in the EU, said.
The delegation will meet people from all walks of life over the next three days, he said.
"We want to see the situation in this part of the world and frame the policies of the EU accordingly," he said about the purpose of the visit.
The delegation had paid a similar visit to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in December 2003.
According to sources, the delegation is scheduled to visit the Line of Control in Uri sector of Baramulla district, where they will meet former state minister and local leader Mohammad Shafi.
The delegation will also call upon Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed and other state functionaries.
They will meet separatist leaders, including Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Maulana Mohammad Abbas Ansari, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Mohammad Yaseen Malik and Shabir Ahmad Shah, the sources said.
Soon after their arrival in Srinagar, the delegation met the Centre's interlocutor on Jammu and Kashmir, N N Vohra and discussed the situation in the state with him for over 90 minutes.
The delegation comprises two members from Britain and one each from the Netherlands, Sweden and Italy. Officials of the EU secretariat and representatives of major political parties in European Parliament accompany them.
