New Delhi, October 5 External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is going to Pakistan to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. He has ruled out the possibility of any talks between India and Pakistan during his upcoming visit to the neighboring country.
Jaishankar admitted that there will be a lot of media attention on his visit to Pakistan given the nature of relations between the two countries, but he clarified that this visit is not for any talks.
It is noteworthy that this is the first time in almost a decade that the country’s Foreign Minister will visit Pakistan. Relations between the two countries have been particularly tense. A major reason for this is the terrorist activities operated from Pakistani soil.
The foreign minister said, “This (visit) will be for a multilateral event. I am not going there to discuss India-Pakistan relations. I am going there as a good member of the SCO. You know, I am a polite and civilized person, so I will behave accordingly.”
Pakistan is hosting the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting on October 15 and 16.
Elaborating on his visit, Jaishankar said, “I am going to Pakistan this month. This visit is for the SCO Heads of Government meeting. Usually, the Prime Minister goes for a high-level meeting with the heads of state. This year the meeting is being held in Islamabad as Pakistan is a new member of the group.”
At the Sardar Patel Lecture organised by the IC Centre for Governance, Jaishankar also made a veiled attack on Pakistan over its terrorist activities.
“Terrorism is something that cannot be accepted. One of our neighbours continues to support terrorism. This cannot go on forever in the region. That is why SAARC meetings have not taken place in recent years,” the foreign minister said.
“However, this does not mean that regional activities have stopped. In fact, in the last 5-6 years, we have seen much greater regional integration in the Indian subcontinent. Today, if you look at our relations with Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka, you will find that railway lines are being restored, roads are being rebuilt and power grids are being built,” Jaishankar added.
