ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Sunday said that Pakistan was ready to host Council of Heads of Government (CHG) of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) meeting on October 15-16 in Islamabad in which different significant issues would be discussed under the SCO framework.
Talking to media after his visit to review arrangements for the upcoming CHG-SCO meeting, the deputy prime minister and foreign minister said that certain countries had requested for bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the CHG-SCO which were finalized.
Replying to a query, Dar said that India had not requested for such bilateral meeting and only the matters related to SCO framework would be discussed by the SCO member states at the multilateral forum.
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar also accompanied the deputy prime minister and foreign minister during a walk with the media persons to provide them first-hand information about the preparations of SCO summit.
About invitation to Afghanistan, the deputy prime minister and foreign minister said that since 2021, the Observers Status of that country had been virtually suspended as Afghanistan had neither been invited to nor participated in SCO meetings.
Therefore, he said, Pakistan could not take decision alone in this regard as the decisions were taken on the SCO forum by the member states. Dar, to another question, said Pakistan is a host to CHG-SCO and would fully meet the responsibility.
About the North-South and South-South connectivity, he said the discussions with the relevant countries were in progress and continuing on the bilateral and multilateral levels.
But within the SCO framework and protocol, certain matters would be discussed under specific scope of discussions and within its contours, he further clarified.
