Jaishankar Dines With PM Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan Looks At Lahore Declaration

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Tuesday arrived in Pakistan to attend the SCO meeting even as Islamabad said it is willing to hold a bilateral talk with New Delhi if its proposes.

Islamabad, Pakistan: In a historic move, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Tuesday landed in Pakistan capital Islamabad to attend the ongoing two-day meeting of the Council of Heads of Government (CHG) of the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) even as his arrival rekindled hopes of a resumption of dialogue between both countries that has remained stalled since 2016.

Jaishankar, who landed here early afternoon at the Nur Khan Airbase of Pakistan, also attended the informal dinner that was being hosted Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The minister, who is on a 24-hour visit in Pakistan, will also be addressing the SCO CHG plenary meeting Wednesday.

While no bilateral meeting between both countries have been planned, PM Sharif and Minister Jaishankar were seen exchanging pleasantries and a brief talk as the dignitaries were welcomed at the Serena Hotel, Islamabad.

Speaking to reporters after the dinner reception, Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives said, Jaishankar said, Pakistan will be willing to hold bilateral talks if India makes a formal proposal.

“We have one of the highest poverties in the world so therefore it is imperative for South Asia as a region to think of collaboration rather than conflicts. Because conflicts do not bring dividends for anyone. We have so much to gain through regional cooperation if you look at the world around every region is integrating and also getting the fruits of integration,” said Iqbal.

Highlighting that South Asia remains the least integrated region in the world, Iqbal batted for the resumption of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

“It is the test of the leadership of this region that whether they can show the vision, foresight to tackle these tough challenges and the tough issues which are obstacles in (achieving) peace in the region. They can all be solved through dialogue. But if we are not talking then we are not solving any problem,” he added.

'Need To Go Back To Lahore Declaration'

Iqbal also stressed that countries should be talking to each other and “not show attitudes to each other … We need to go back to the spirit of the Lahore Declaration. That was the high point between the leaderships of both countries… I think that is the spirit for both countries to move forward. If we go back to the spirit of Lahore Declaration, I think there is no problem that we cannot solve together.”

“Unfortunately the events did not favour the Lahore Declaration but we need to move beyond pointing fingers… SAARC is dysfunctional, European Union is not dysfunctional, GCC is not dysfunctional, ASEAN is not dysfunctional

The 1999 Lahore Declaration was signed on 21 February of that year in Lahore between Atal Behari Vajpayee and Nawaz Sharif, former Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan respectively. The declaration stipulated that both sides will resolve the Kashmir dispute, establish confidence-building measures and address the issue of terrorism. However, India later on blamed Pakistan violating the treaty for instigating the Kargil War.

Meanwhile, the External Affairs Minister held a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Mongolia on the sidelines of the meeting in Islamabad.

Jaishankar’s visit has also given rise to hopes that next year the Indian cricket team will also be visiting Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.