NEW DELHI, India: There is a possibility that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi will have a meeting on the sidelines of the 18th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit being held in Kathmandu on November 26-27.
The Indian media reported that Modi, who will leave for Kathmandu on November 25 to attend the SAARC summit, is keen to have meaningful dialogues with as many south Asian leaders as possible.
The prime minister is keen “to have meaningful dialogues with as many south Asian colleagues as possible”, the Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman Syed Akbaruddin was quoted as saying by the Indian media while talking to reports in New Delhi on Sunday.
“This would mean taking into account all aspects of relationships,” the spokesman said.
The Indian external affairs ministry spokesman said that India is for cooperative and peaceful ties with Pakistan.
Syed Akbaruddin said that the schedule of the bilateral meetings is being finalised, “and it is a work in progress”. “Our intent is to have meaningful dialogues,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan’s Foreign Office said that the prime minister will lead a delegation to participate in the SAARC summit being held in Nepal’s capital with its theme “Deeper Integration for Peace and Prosperity”.
“Pakistan attaches high importance to SAARC and is committed to the SAARC process,” the foreign office said.
“Pakistan firmly believes that given the resources, SAARC region has the potential to become the engine for global economic growth for the 21st century,” it added.
The foreign office said that the summit will be preceded by the preparatory meetings at the senior officials and ministerial level.
The foreign secretary is presently in Kathmandu to represent Pakistan in the SAARC standing committee meeting followed by the SAARC council of ministers meeting on November 25, which will be attended by the adviser to the prime minister on national security & foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz.
On the sidelines of the event, the prime minister will meet other leaders of SAARC countries to discuss issues of bilateral and regional interest, the foreign office said.
