SCO Summit in Pakistan: India's External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, is set to arrive in Pakistan on Tuesday to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit.
This will mark India's first high-level visit to Pakistan in several years amidst ongoing tensions between the two neighboring countries.
Officials stated that upon arriving in Islamabad, Jaishankar will attend a welcome dinner hosted by Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for SCO member nations.
Both sides have ruled out any bilateral talks between Jaishankar and his Pakistani counterpart, Ishaq Dar, on the sidelines of the SCO Heads of Government Summit.
For the first time in nearly nine years, an Indian Foreign Minister will visit Pakistan, despite ongoing strained relations between the two neighboring countries over the Kashmir issue and Pakistan’s cross-border terrorism.
Reports suggest that Jaishankar will stay in Pakistan for less than 24 hours. Pakistan is hosting the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting, which will take place on October 15 and 16.
The last Indian Foreign Minister to visit Pakistan was Sushma Swaraj, who traveled to Islamabad in December 2015 to participate in a conference on Afghanistan.
Pakistan had invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi in August to attend the SCO summit.
Jaishankar’s visit to Pakistan is considered significant, as it is viewed as a key decision by India. In a recent address at an event, Jaishankar stated, "Like any neighboring country, India would certainly want better relations with Pakistan. But this cannot happen by overlooking cross-border terrorism or merely wishing for its end."
The decision to send a senior minister for this summit reflects India’s commitment to the SCO.
India has consistently maintained that it seeks a normal neighborly relationship with Pakistan, while also emphasizing that the responsibility to create a terror-free and hostility-free environment for such talks lies with Pakistan.
In May 2023, Pakistan's then Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited India to attend the SCO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Goa. This marked the first visit by a Pakistani Foreign Minister to India in nearly 12 years.
