EAM Jaishankar arrives in Islamabad for SCO meeting

India's External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar arrived in Islamabad Tuesday afternoon to attend the two-day 23rd Meeting of SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) which kicks off later with a welcome dinner hosted by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in his capacity as the current CHG chair.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) plane carrying the Indian delegation landed at Rawalpindi's Nur Khan airbase. The last time an Indian EAM visited Pakistan was in 2015 when then External Affairs Minister late Sushma Swaraj attended the Heart of Asia Conference in Islamabad in December 2015.

India has consistently maintained that better relations with Pakistan can only be possible in an atmosphere free of terror and violence.

"The SCO CHG meeting is held annually and focuses on the trade and economic agenda of the organisation. External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar will represent India at the meeting. India remains actively engaged in the SCO format, including various mechanisms and initiatives within the SCO framework," a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said before Jaishankar's departure on Tuesday.

According to the programme released by a spokesperson of Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, the dinner hosted by Sharif remains the only official engagement for the visiting leaders and delegations on Tuesday.

The second day of the meeting will begin with Sharif receiving leaders at Islamabad's Jinnah Convention Centre. The proceedings will begin following a group photograph and Sharif's opening remarks at the conference.

The signing of various documents will take place before Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and SCO Secretary General Zhang Ming make their media statements. It will be followed by an official luncheon hosted by the country's PM.

The other SCO member states are represented by the Prime Ministers of China, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as well as the First Vice President of Iran. Prime Minister of Mongolia (Observer State) and Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan (Special Guest) will also participate in the meeting.

According to the Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, the CHG meeting will discuss ongoing cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, environment, socio-cultural linkages and review the performance of the organisation.

The leaders will adopt important organisational decisions to further enhance cooperation among SCO member States and approve the budget of the organization.

Despite the fact that EAM Jaishankar is expected to be in Islamabad for only about 24 hours and no India-Pakistan bilateral engagement is scheduled on the sidelines of the meeting, several ministers of the ruling government in Pakistan and the opposition leaders have put the spotlight on his arrival for domestic political gains.

In fact, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmaker and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Information Advisor Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif had extended an invitation to Jaishankar to come and meet PTI workers who are holding a protest rally in the country's capital.

"All foreign delegations coming to Islamabad for the SCO Summit will be happy to see our protest and will appreciate the democratic practices and strength of our country... We would also invite Mr. Jaishankar to address our anti-government protest and see for himself how strong Pakistan's democracy is," said Saif.