Monday, June 27 2005 19:28 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

London: Britain today (Jun 27, 2005) assured India to "sympathetically" look at its demand for revising the adverse foreign travel advisory to Jammu and Kashmir.

The issue came up during a meeting between External Affairs Minister K Natwar Singh and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London.

At a joint press briefing with Straw after the meeting, Singh said, "The question of Britain's (adverse) travel advisory to Jammu and Kashmir came up. An estimated 7,000 foreign tourists are currently in areas like Srinagar, Pahalgam and Gulmarg in Jammu and Kashmir.

"The Foreign Secretary has assured us to look at our demand sympathetically."

Though situation in Jammu and Kashmir had improved considerably, the adverse travel advisory by Britain Foreign Office is preventing Britons from visiting Jammu and Kashmir.

At present, travellers from Israel and Italy visit Jammu and Kashmir. An estimated 800,000 domestic tourists from the rest of the country also visited Jammu and Kashmir last year.