PM Modi invited to SCO meeting in Islamabad: Pakistan Foreign Office

Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday formally confirmed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting to be held in Islamabad in mid-October.

Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in her weekly press briefing that the country has sent invitations to heads of states to attend the meeting, Pakistani media reported.

“Invitation has also been sent to Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India,” she said, adding that some countries have already confirmed their participation in the meeting. “It will be informed in due course as to which country has confirmed,” Baloch said.

Pakistan is scheduled to host the SCO Heads of Government Meeting on October 15-16. The event will be preceded by ministerial meetings and several rounds of senior officials’ meetings, which will focus on financial, economic, socio-cultural and humanitarian cooperation among SCO member states.

Analysts see this invitation as a “protocol” one as PM Modi is unlikely to accept the invitation as relations between the two neighbouring countries have been strained since India revoked Article 370 of the Constitution and changed the status of Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019.

It is expected that PM Modi may send a ministerial delegation to represent India as the SCO meeting does not require the participation of heads of state. Previously too, India has been represented by ministers in the SCO CHG meetings and the pattern is the same this time too.

PM Modi also did not attend the 24th annual summit of the SCO heads of state held in Kazakhstan on July 3-4 this year and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar represented India in Astana.

Pakistani analysts say they do not expect PM Modi to come to Pakistan for the meeting. Political analyst Kamran Yusuf said, “Inviting PM Modi and all other member countries is a mandatory protocol that any host country follows. Pakistan has done the same. I don’t see it as a political stunt. However, I don’t see PM Modi coming to Islamabad.” Last year, then Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited India for the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting. (IANS)