ISLAMABAD – Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto has dismissed speculationsurrounding his upcoming visit to India, stating that it should not beinterpreted as a sign of improved bilateral ties between the twoneighbouring countries.
Bilawal Bhutto will be attending a meeting of the Shanghai CooperationOrganisation (SCO) in Goa next month, marking the first visit by aPakistani foreign minister to India in almost a decade.
Relations between Pakistan and India have been fraught for many years, withthe two nuclear-armed neighbours having fought three wars.
Speaking to Geo News on Thursday, Bhutto clarified that he had notrequested a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He emphasizedthat the visit should be seen in the context of the SCO, which is aneight-member political and security bloc that includes Russia and China.
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Bhutto stated that Pakistan is committed to the SCO charter, and that theirparticipation in the meeting reflects Pakistan’s continued commitment tothe SCO charter and process, as well as the importance that Pakistan placeson the region in its foreign policy priorities. He also stressed thatPakistan cannot allow India to further isolate it.
State-run radio sources have reported that no request for a bilateralmeeting between the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India has been madeon this occasion. Bhutto’s visit marks the first time a top Pakistaniofficial has visited India since Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attendedModi’s swearing-in ceremony in 2014.