Swaraj, Aziz to meet at SAARC event, Pakistan to invite Modi

NEW DELHI: The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan are scheduled to meet in Nepal this week despite Pathankot terrorist attack continuing to cast its shadow over the efforts to bring the dialogue process between the neighbours back on track.

Exter nal af f airs minister Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistan counterpart Sartaj Aziz will be in the scenic Nepal town of Pokhara on March 16 and 17 to take part in the ministerial meeting of the South Asian countries. The meeting between Swaraj and Aziz is tipped to take place on March 17.

Pakistan foreign office spokesperson said “Aziz, will meet Foreign Ministers of SAARC countries on the sidelines of the SAARC Council of Ministers’ meeting on 17 March 2016 in Nepal to extend PM Nawaz Sharif ’s formal invitation to their respective Heads of State/ Heads of Government for the 19th SAARC Summit, being hosted by Pakistan in Islamabad this year.”

The Aziz-Sushmma meeting is primarily billed as an occasion for Aziz to handover the invitation from Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to attend this year’s SAARC summit. Pakistan will host the SAARC summit, possibly in November, and Modi is set to attend the event.

Indian officials pointed out the fine print of a Pakistan foreign office statement that Aziz would be meeting all his South Asian counterparts to handover the invite for the summit.