ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto briefed PDM leaders and others on his first India visit on Wednesday.
Today, the foreign minister will travel to Goa, India, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers meeting on May 4-5.
Bilawal Bhutto called Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) Ameer Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Balochistan National Party (BNP) President Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Jamat-e-Islami (JI) Ameer Sirajul Haq, and National Party (NP) leader Tahir Bizenjo.
They advised him during his two-day Goa visit.
SCO meeting
While, The Foreign Office said the FM will attend the SCO moot at Dr. S Jaishankar’s invitation.
“Our participation in the meeting reflects Pakistan’s commitment to the SCO charter and processes and the importance Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities,” the FO spokesperson said.
The foreign minister and a delegation will fly chartered from Karachi to Goa, according to CAA sources.
Sources said the Indian civil aviation authorities contacted the PCCA to finalise the special plane’s route.
The council will finalise the agenda and decisions for the 17th SCO Council of Heads of State Meeting in New Delhi on 3-4 July 2023, as well as discuss regional and international issues and sign institutional documents.
SCO Dialogue Partners Bahrain, Kuwait, Maldives, Myanmar, and UAE will sign MoUs at the meeting.
FM Bilawal will also meet with friendly nations at the SCO.
Pakistan, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and India are SCO members.
SCO’s main goals are promoting mutual trust and good neighbourliness among member states, strengthening regional peace, security, and stability, and creating a framework for effective cooperation in politics, trade and economy, culture, science and technology, education, energy, transportation, tourism, and environmental protection.
Pakistan has actively and constructively participated in all SCO activities to achieve its multi-sectoral goals since 2017.
Won’t meet Indian leaders
Moreover, FM Bilawal said his India visit should not be “misconstrued in terms of bilateral ties” last week.
Bilawal told that he did not request a meeting with Modi.
“We are committed to the SCO charter and this visit should not be seen as bilateral but in the context of SCO. “Our participation at the meeting reflects Pakistan’s continued commitment to the SCO charter and process and the importance Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities,” Bilawal said.
He said India cannot further isolate Pakistan.
A top Pakistani official will visit India for the first time since then-prime minister Nawaz Sharif attended Narendra Modi’s swearing-in in 2014.
