New Delhi: India has formally lodged a protest with the United States over the visit of the US ambassador to Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) earlier this week. The US envoy had referred to the region as ‘Azad Jammu and Kashmir’.At the weekly media briefing on Friday, October 7, ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “Our objection to the visit and meetings in Pakistan Occupied Jammu and Kashmir by the US Ambassador to Pakistan has been conveyed to the US side.”He didn’t elaborate further on when and how the protest was lodged.From October 2 to 4, the US ambassador to Pakistan, Donald Blome, had visited PoJK, named Azad Jammu and Kashmir by the Pakistan government.India lays claims to the entire Kashmir region, including the part currently administered by Pakistan beyond the Line of Control (LoC).During his visit, the US embassy posted a series of tweets documenting his visit to “AJK”.“The Quaid-e-Azam Memorial Dak Bungalow symbolizes the cultural and historical richness of Pakistan and was famously visited by Jinnah in 1944. I’m honored to visit during my first trip to AJK.” -DB #AmbBlome #PakUSAt75 1/3 pic.twitter.com/KKIEJ17sUo— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) October 2, 2022“Damaged during the 2005 earthquake, the local government has beautifully restored this heritage site for the benefit of the community and visiting travelers.” -DB #AmbBlome #CulturalHeritage 2/3 pic.twitter.com/d7a28FUsrC— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) October 2, 2022Ambassador Blome laid a wreath to honor the victims of the 2005 earthquake at the Earthquake Memorial Site, Muzaffarabad. Throughout our 75-year partnership, the U.S. has stood by Pakistan at moments of great need. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/8xofvHWfxl— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) October 4, 2022Ambassador Blome hosted a reception to meet with members of the Muzaffarabad chapter of @PakUSAlumni, the world’s largest U.S. alumni program. There are 950 #PUAN members in AJK. #PakUSat75 1/2 pic.twitter.com/z6OrMIx5Kn— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) October 4, 2022Ambassador Blome visited U.S. healthcare IT services company: @CareCloud in Bagh, AJK. CareCloud’s Bagh facility is its largest in Pakistan, with 2,525 employees, 17% of whom are female. The U.S. is a leading investor in Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/BRqPklqbMc— U.S. Embassy Islamabad (@usembislamabad) October 4, 2022A press release of the US embassy on the visit also referred to ‘Azad Jammu and Kashmir’ several times in the text.Meanwhile, the US on Friday asked its citizens to exercise “increased caution” while travelling to India due to “crime and terrorism” and advised them not to travel to the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The US State Department reduced the India Travel Advisory Level to 2 on a scale of one to 4 with the latter being the highest.“Do not travel to: The union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (except the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh) due to terrorism and civil unrest. Within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border due to the potential for armed conflict,” it said.Last year, the US state department had to clarify its position on Kashmir after a tweet over the restoration of 4G internet in February 2021. The tweet identified the state as “India’s Jammu and Kashmir”.It led to questions at the regular media briefing, where the spokesperson faced queries on whether Washington had changed its Kashmir policy. “I want to be very clear, there has been no change in US policy in the region,” said State Department spokesperson Ned Price on February 10, 2021.Pakistan foreign office spokesperson had expressed disappointment. “The reference is inconsistent with the disputed status of Jammu and Kashmir as recognised by numerous United Nations Security Council resolutions and the international community,” he said, as reported by Dawn newspaper.According to a 2019 report by the Congressional Research Service, the long-standing US position on Kashmir is that the “territory’s status should be settled through negotiations between India and Pakistan while taking into consideration the wishes of the Kashmiri people”.This is the second time India has recently objected to developments in the bilateral relations between the United States and Pakistan.In early September, the US administration approved a $450 million F-16 fighter jet fleet sustainment programme to Pakistan, reversing the decision of the previous Trump administration to suspend military aid to Islamabad for providing safe havens for the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network.The Indian government has raised objections to the sale of the F-16 maintenance package to Pakistan, arguing that the fighter jets are used against India rather than for counter-terrorism.During this US visit, Indian external affairs minister S. Jaishankar had said that the US’s argument that the $450 million F-16 jet aircraft maintenance package to Pakistan was for counter-terrorism was “not fooling anybody”.Two days later, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken had justified the sale at a joint media briefing with Jaishankar. “These are not new planes, new systems, new weapons. It’s sustaining what they have. We have a responsibility and an obligation to whomever we provide military equipment to make sure that it’s maintained and sustained,” Blinken said.(With PTI inputs)Note: This copy, first published at 10:10 pm on October 7, was updated on the same day at 11:35 pm with details on the US State Department’s India travel advisory.