Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif has confirmed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be invited to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit this October. The summit, which will be hosted in Islamabad, marks the SCO’s Heads of Governments meeting. Pakistan currently chairs the SCO.
Asif stated that inviting Modi is a standard procedure to reflect the SCO’s inclusive nature. He emphasized that the host country cannot exclude member states from invitations. This move follows India’s invitation to Pakistan’s former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to an SCO meeting in 2023.
The upcoming summit is significant due to the historically tense relations between India and Pakistan. Both nations, who have fought multiple wars, have seen limited high-level interactions in recent years. The invitation to Modi could potentially open doors for renewed dialogue between the two countries.