Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is set to visit Pakistan to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Heads of Government meeting on October 15-16. This marks the first visit by an Indian foreign minister to Pakistan in nearly a decade.
Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for India’s foreign ministry, confirmed that Jaishankar will lead the Indian delegation at the summit in Islamabad. However, no confirmation has been provided regarding meetings with Pakistani leaders during the visit.
Indian journalist Umashankar Singh, citing an external ministry spokesperson, emphasized that Jaishankar’s visit should be viewed strictly within the context of the regional summit.
Pakistan had earlier extended invitations to all SCO member states, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as part of Pakistan’s role as the current Chair of the SCO-CHG. Pakistani Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch also confirmed receiving several confirmations for participation.
This summit follows a visit by Pakistan’s former foreign minister, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, to India in May for an SCO foreign ministers’ meeting, which was the first high-level Pakistani visit to India since Nawaz Sharif attended Modi’s inauguration in 2014.
Relations between Pakistan and India soured in 2019 when New Delhi revoked the special status of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), leading Pakistan to downgrade diplomatic ties. Islamabad has since linked the restoration of full ties with India to the reversal of this decision. Despite strained relations, both countries renewed a ceasefire agreement along the Line of Control (LoC) in 2021.
The upcoming SCO summit, which will focus on regional security and cooperation, is also significant for India as it engages with Central Asian countries. India, however, continues to distance itself from China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a key point of divergence within SCO member states.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s government has prepared a comprehensive security plan, deploying additional personnel from the Army, Rangers, Frontier Corps, and Punjab police to ensure the safety of attendees at the summit.
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