India FM lands in Pakistan for rare visit
Published: 04:10 PM,Oct 15,2024 | EDITED : 08:10 PM,Oct 15,2024
A policeman patrols near the venue of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, in Islamabad. — AFP
ISLAMABAD: Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, the first top Delhi diplomat to visit their neighbour in nearly a decade. Jaishankar's plane landed just before 3:30 pm at an airbase near the capital Islamabad, a foreign office official said.
Indian government spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said this month the agenda of Jaishankar's visit would strictly follow the SCO schedule, which is due to discuss trade, humanitarian and social issues. 'The Indian foreign minister has not requested a bilateral meeting, nor have we extended an invitation to them,' Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Sunday. Pakistan's former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was in Goa last year -- also a rare visit -- for an SCO meeting where he and Jaishankar were involved in a verbal spat. — AFP
Indian government spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said this month the agenda of Jaishankar's visit would strictly follow the SCO schedule, which is due to discuss trade, humanitarian and social issues. 'The Indian foreign minister has not requested a bilateral meeting, nor have we extended an invitation to them,' Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Sunday. Pakistan's former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was in Goa last year -- also a rare visit -- for an SCO meeting where he and Jaishankar were involved in a verbal spat. — AFP