Bilawal Bhutto to attend SCO meet in India next month

Islamabad: The Pakistan Foreign Office on Thursday announced that Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) slated to be held in India next month.

Confirming the development to mediapersons at a news briefing, FO spokesperson Mumtaz Zahrah Baloch said: “Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will be leading the Pakistan delegation to the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) being held on May 4-5 in Goa,” Dawn news reported.

She said Bilawal will be attending the meeting at the invitation of the current chairman of SCO CFM, India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.

“Our participation in the meeting reflects Pakistan’s commitment to the SCO Charter and processes and the importance that Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities,” Baloch said.

“Pakistan continues to participate in SCO meetings in keeping with our longstanding commitment to SCO.”

The FO spokesperson also highlighted that Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman had represented the country in the fourth SCO meeting of heads of ministries on environmental protection.

“The meeting was held in online format in New Delhi April 18.”

in January, India had invited Pakistan’s Foreign Minister to the SCO meeting in May, reports Dawn news.

Bilawal will be the first Foreign Minister to visit India after a gap of nearly 12 years.

The last Foreign Minister to visit India was Hina Rabbani Khar in July 2011.

(IANS)