
India will invite Pak PM Imran Khan for SCO meet: Officials
India will invite Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan to the annual meeting of the council of heads of government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) it will host this year, people familiar with developments said on Tuesday.
However, a final decision on whether PM Khan attends the meeting, which will likely be held later in the year, will be made by Islamabad, the people cited above said.
“According to protocol and convention, an invitation will be extended to the Pakistani Prime Minister. It is up to Pakistan whether their Prime Minister or some other representative attends the meeting. Besides, there is still a long time before the meeting,” said a person who declined to be named.
India is hosting the meeting of the council of heads of government of the SCO for the first time, the grouping’s secretary general Vladimir Norov told reporters on the margins of an event in New Delhi on Monday.
There have also been instances of the foreign ministers of countries attending the SCO heads of government meetings in the past, the people said.
Norov, who arrived in New Delhi on Sunday on a four-day visit, has held talks with external affairs minister S Jaishankar. It was not immediately clear whether Pakistan’s participation in the SCO meeting figured in the discussions.
“Received Secretary General #ShanghaiCooperation Organization Vladimir Norov. Reviewed the progress in our cooperation as India prepares to take up the responsibility of chairing the Council of #SCO Heads of Government,” Jaishankar had tweeted.
Norov said on Monday all SCO members are glad that India is hosting the SCO heads of government meeting this year. India is an important country in the region and has huge potential for fuelling economic growth, he said.
He said the event will be preceded by a number of meetings in India including the meeting of the SCO ministers of economic activities.
India was an observer at the SCO since 2005 and has generally participated in the ministerial-level meetings of the grouping which focus mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian region.
India and Pakistan both became full members of the SCO in June 2017 and New Delhi’s entry into the China-dominated grouping increased its heft.
The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Indian Navy Ships to visit Bangladesh on 50th anniversary of 1971 Liberation war

India's Covid-19 tally rises after 18,599 fresh cases recorded in last 24 hours

On International Women’s Day, PM Modi salutes ‘indomitable Nari Shakti’

Healthcare to generate jobs, govt to focus on skilling for employment abroad

SC to hear Kerala's plea against leasing of Trivandrum airport to Adani

PM-led panel to commemorate 75 years of India's Independence to meet today

Parliament LIVE: Second leg of Budget session begins as Rajya Sabha reconvenes

Panel to commemorate 75 years of India's Independence to hold 1st meeting today

Light rain, thunderstorms likely over parts of NW India till Tuesday

Maharashtra’s Aurangabad in ‘partial lockdown’. Here’s a look at all curbs

Covid-19 LIVE: India's sees 18,599 fresh cases, 97 deaths in last 24 hours

Iran guided Israeli embassy blast through local module, upsets India: Officials

Truck collides autorickshaw in Maharashtra; 5 killed, eight injured

Ram Temple likely to be ready in 3 years, says Trust

Amit Shah attacks CM over gold smuggling case
- Addressing the concluding session of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president K Surendran’s “Vijay Yatra” in the state capital, Shah posed five questions to the CM.