India confirmed on Friday that it has received an official invitation from Pakistan to attend the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting, set to take place in Islamabad this October.
The invitation, sent on Thursday, is addressed to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During a media briefing in New Delhi, a spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) acknowledged the receipt of the invitation but stated, “We do not have an update on that,” when asked about India’s response.
As the current rotating chair of the SCO Council of Heads of Government, Pakistan will be hosting the two-day in-person summit scheduled for October 15-16. Pakistan’s Foreign Office Spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, confirmed at her weekly press briefing that invitations have been sent to the heads of SCO member states, including Prime Minister Modi. She also mentioned that several countries have already confirmed their participation, with details to be disclosed soon.
The Islamabad summit will be preceded by a ministerial meeting and various senior officials’ meetings aimed at enhancing financial, economic, socio-cultural, and humanitarian cooperation among the SCO member nations.
The SCO, established in 2001 in Shanghai by the presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, has grown into a significant trans-regional organization. India and Pakistan became permanent members of the SCO in 2017, further expanding the bloc’s influence. In July 2023, Iran also joined as a permanent member during a virtual summit hosted by India.
Both Pakistan and India, despite their historically strained relations, participate actively in the SCO’s activities. India hosted the SCO Summit in 2023, conducted virtually, with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif participating via video link. In May 2023, Pakistan’s then-foreign minister, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, visited India to attend an in-person SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Goa—the first such visit by a Pakistani foreign minister in nearly 12 years.
While tensions between the two nations persist, especially over the Kashmir issue and cross-border terrorism, the SCO provides a platform for both countries to engage in multilateral dialogue.
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