Mahathir stands by Kashmir comments despite palm oil boycott by India

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 22(Reuters): Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Tuesday he would not retract his criticism of New Delhi's actions in the disputed region of Kashmir even though Indian traders have urged a boycott of Malaysian palm oil.

The impasse could exacerbate what Mahathir described as a trade war between the world's second biggest producer and exporter of the commodity and its biggest buyer so far this year.

India's top vegetable oil trade body on Monday asked its members to stop buying Malaysian palm oil after Mahathir said at the U.N. General Assembly last month that India had "invaded and occupied" Kashmir, a disputed Muslim-majority region also claimed by Pakistan.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government removed the long-standing autonomy of India's portion of the Kashmir valley on Aug 5, calling it an internal matter and criticising countries that have spoken out against the move.

"We speak our minds, and we don't retract or change," Mahathir told reporters outside parliament.