Breaking his silence over his forthcoming visit to India for the Foreign Ministers meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's member states, Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said that his participation in the event shouldn't be seen with a "bilateral" lense, local media reported on Friday.
Bilawal added that his India visit for the May 4-5 meeting of SCO foreign ministers in the coastal state of Goa was a reflection of his country's commitment to the grouping's charter. He said it should only be viewed in that context.
"We are committed to the SCO charter and this visit should not be seen as a bilateral one but in the context of the SCO," Bilawal was quoted as telling Pakistani news outlet Dunya News.
His remarks came hours after Pakistan's Foreign Ministry confirmed that he would spearhead Islamabad's talks at the regional bloc's council's meeting in India.
"Our participation at the meeting reflects Pakistan's continued commitment to the SCO charter and process and the importance that Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities," Pakistan Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said at a press briefing in Islamabad.
Pakistani MoFA's tweet
© Photo : Twitter/ @ForeignOfficePk
Bilawal would become the first Pakistani foreign minister to visit India after 12 years. Hina Rabbani, Khar who served as Foreign Minister at the time, visited India in 2011. She is the current Junior Foreign Minister.
Bilateral ties between the two neighboring nations remain suspended after India revoked the special status of the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir region in 2019, turning it into two union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
Bilawal is expected to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Russia's Sergey Lavrov, apart from his Indian counterpart S. Jaishankar during the visit.