Prince William, Kate Middleton likely to call off Pakistan visit

Prince William and wife Kate Middleton, who had plans of travelling to Pakistan later this year, might be taking a rain-check on their upcoming visit due to the ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan.

As per reports citing a statement released by Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge appears to be called off due to the current turn of events in the region, reported The News International.

On June 30, an official statement from the royal family had announced that the couple was to visit Pakistan later this year upon the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

"The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will undertake an official visit to Pakistan this autumn, at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office," the Kensington Palace wrote on Twitter.

If it would have materialised, the trip would have been the first official visit by a member of the British royal family to Pakistan since 2006 when Prince Charles and Camilla had travelled to the South Asian country.

This will not be the first time that the royal couple will be travelling to Southeast Asia and the South Pacific. They made their way in the fall of 2012. During their last trip, they visited Singapore, Malaysia, the Solomon Islands, and Tuyalu. They also visited India in 2016.

The members of the royal family have also earlier been to the south Asian country, including Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, and his wife.

Previously, Queen Elizabeth II had visited Pakistan in 1961 and 1997, and the late Princess Diana in 1991.

Tensions have been boiling between India and Pakistan ever since New Delhi on August 5 scrapped the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divided it into two Union Territories -- Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, in order to bring in faster development to the state.

( With inputs from ANI )