By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is set to make a rare diplomatic visit to Pakistan this month for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, with strained ties between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
Jaishankar’s Oct. 15-16 trip marks the first visit by an Indian external affairs minister to Pakistan since 2015. Late Sushma Swaraj last attended a security conference on Afghanistan in Islamabad.
“The external affairs minister will lead a delegation to Pakistan to participate in the SCO summit which will be held in Islamabad on October 15 and 16,” an Indian external affairs ministry spokesman said during a news conference in New Delhi.
Pakistan had extended an invitation to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend a summit meeting on August 26, marking the first such overture since Modi boycotted a SAARC summit in Islamabad eight years ago. Modi typically does not attend these gatherings, instead sending his external affairs minister as a representative.
Relations between India and Pakistan hit a major low in 2019 when New Delhi revoked Muslim-majority Kashmir’s special autonomy, sparking widespread protests and a security crackdown.
Tensions between the arch-rivals further escalated following India’s decision to hold elections in the disputed Kashmir region. Pakistan has criticized the polls, viewing them as an attempt to solidify India’s control over the territory.
The South Asian neighbors have fought three wars, including two over control of the disputed Kashmir region in the Himalayas. New Delhi accuses Islamabad of aiding and abetting Islamist militants fighting Indian rule in the region, a charge Pakistan denies.
The SCO which includes India, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Iran and Uzbekistan with India and Pakistan joining the group in 2017. Heads of state and government are expected in Islamabad, but the Foreign Office says it will make public the list when all acceptances have been made.
Pakistan at present holds the rotating chairmanship of “one of the largest trans-regional international organizations, “which will see the SCO preceded by a ministerial meeting and several rounds of senior officials meetings.
The last high-level visit between India and Pakistan took place in May 2023 when Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Pakistan’s former foreign minister, attended the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting in Goa, India. Notably, Bhutto-Zardari did not meet with Indian leaders during his visit, instead using the platform to exchange blame with Jaishankar for their tense relations.
It is unclear whether Jaishankar will meet Pakistani officials on the sidelines of the SCO event.
Michael Kugelman, Director of the South Asia Institute, views Jaishankar’s visit as primarily driven by India’s commitment to the SCO, rather than seeking to improve ties with Pakistan.
“Though Jaishankar’s visit to Pakistan is about multilateral diplomacy more than bilateral relations, the significance for India-Pakistan ties shouldn’t be overlooked,” Kugelman said. “The decision is undoubtedly motivated more by India’s commitment to the SCO than to a desire to move the needle forward on relations with Pakistan.”
Indian political commentator Pravin Sawhney emphasized the strategic importance of Pakistan in the new global geopolitical landscape.
“The tragedy of South Asia is that India does not understand the importance of Pakistan in the new global geopolitical. Worse, Pakistan does not understand its own importance,” Sawhney said. “Since 2016 when India ended SAARC by refusing to attend its summit in Islamabad, Pakistan with the support of CPEC had the opportunity to foster greater cooperation within South Asia. This could have made India rethink its Pakistan policy for fear of strategic isolation in neighborhood.”
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