S. Jaishankar will visit Pakistan, the first trip by an Indian Foreign Minister since 2015.

Photo: Reuters

India announced on Friday that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will travel to Pakistan for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) conclave in mid-October. The announcement was made by external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.

Sushma Swaraj was the last Indian External Affairs Minister to visit Pakistan, attending a conference on Afghanistan in Islamabad in December 2015. Pakistan is hosting the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting on October 15 and 16.

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Jaiswal stated that the External Affairs Minister will lead India's delegation to participate in the SCO summit in Islamabad, clarifying that the visit is solely for this purpose. In August, Pakistan invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the SCO summit.

Jaishankar's visit is significant, viewed as a major decision by New Delhi, reflecting India's commitment to the SCO, which plays a crucial role in enhancing regional security cooperation. 

Relations between India and Pakistan deteriorated significantly after India's airstrikes on a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist camp in Balakot in February 2019, following the Pulwama terror attack. The situation worsened further after India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019, splitting the state into two union territories.

India maintains that it seeks normal relations with Pakistan but emphasizes that Islamabad must create a terror-free environment for meaningful engagement. The SCO Council of Heads of Government conclave is the second-highest platform within the organization, while the heads of state summit is the top forum, typically attended by India's Prime Minister.

The SCO, which includes India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, is a prominent economic and security bloc that has become one of the largest transregional international organizations. India began its association with the SCO as an observer country in 2005 and became a full member at the Astana summit in 2017.

India has shown strong interest in enhancing security cooperation with the SCO and its Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS), which focuses on security and defense issues. The SCO was established in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, with Pakistan and India becoming permanent members in 2017.