ISLAMABAD: Advisor to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz will go to India to participate in the Heart of Asia Conference amid continuing skirmishes between the two nuclear-armed neighbours at the border. According to reports, Sartaj will travel to India via Wagah border on December 4 and return to the country on the same day.
The statement comes at a time when the neighbouring archrivals are busy in efforts to isolate it on international level, while at the same time it has engaged Pakistan on the Line of Control and Working Boundary. Representatives of 40 countries will participate in the two-day conference, including Afghan President Dr Ashraf Ghani. Previously, this conference was held in Islamabad and the Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj attended the event.
The government has decided to partake in the meeting, while opposition parties opposed the plan, saying the advisor to the premier shouldn’t go to India to attend the conference due to ongoing border tensions. Some experts believe that this participation is in the interest of the country as Pakistan should not be out of the loop when it comes to South Asian affairs.
Afghanistan is our neighbouring country and peace over there is part of the Pakistan’s foreign policy, they added. According to them, Pakistan made several efforts for dialogues between Taliban and the Afghan government but the process was sabotaged when an attack by the US killed Taliban’s Mullah Akhtar Mansoor.
Pakistan will have a chance to contact representatives of other countries regarding Afghanistan and India, opening doors of dialogue for resolution of ongoing tension between the two countries. The expert also asked the advisor to attend the meeting and send a message of peace and love from Pakistan through media interactions to the people of India. Earlier this year, India refused to attend a SAARC conference in Pakistan due to ongoing tensions between the two countries, prompting the summit’s cancellation.
