Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has formally invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting to be held in Islamabad in October.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson gave this information. He said that Pakistan has invited Prime Minister Modi to participate in the SCO Heads of Government Summit.
During a weekly press conference, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mumtaz Zehra Baloch said invitations have been sent to heads of state and government to attend the summit scheduled for October 15-16, the Dawn newspaper reported. “An invitation has also been sent to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Baloch was quoted as saying in the report.
Baloch said some countries have already confirmed their participation in the SCO Heads of Government Summit. “It will be announced in due course which country has confirmed,” he said.
Pakistan and India have a long history of tense relations, primarily due to the Kashmir issue and cross-border terrorism sponsored by Pakistan.
India has been saying that it wants normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan. However, it has been insisting that for such relations, it is Pakistan’s responsibility to create an environment free of terror and hostility.
The SCO Summit will be preceded by several rounds of ministerial talks and senior officials’ meetings, focusing on financial, economic, socio-cultural and humanitarian cooperation among SCO member states.
The SCO is an influential economic and security grouping of India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
When asked about relations with India, the spokesperson said, “There is no direct bilateral trade between Pakistan and India.”
Pakistan downgraded its ties with India after the Indian Parliament abrogated Article 370 on August 5, 2019.
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