Srinagar, Aug. 19 -- US Ambassador Sergio Gor on Wednesday called Jammu and Kashmir an "important part of India" after meeting Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in Srinagar during the first standalone visit by the US envoy to the Union Territory since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 and the Pakistan-backed terror attack in Pahalgam in 2025.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Gor, commended the security efforts made by the union territory adminstration and Centre to make Jammu and Kashmir more safe, and signalled a potential shift in Washington's stance by indicating that the US may re-evaluate and "downgrade" its highest-level travel warning for J&K.

"This is an important part of India and so I'm here visiting for the first time....