ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) via video link on July 4, the foreign ministry said on Friday.
India, as the chair nation of this year’s summit of the SCO Council of Heads of State, announced in May that it would hold the event in a virtual format. Defense and foreign ministers of the bloc attended in-person meetings in India this year.
The SCO is a political and security union of countries spanning much of Eurasia, including China, India and Russia.
“Sharif will participate in the 23rd Meeting of SCO Council of Heads of State (CHS) being held in videoconference format on 4th July 2023,” the foreign office said. “The invitation to the Prime Minister to attend the SCO-CHS was extended by the Prime Minister of India in his capacity as the current Chair of the SCO.”
The foreign office said leaders would “deliberate on important global and regional issues and chart the future direction of cooperation among SCO Member States.” at the July meeting.
“The Prime Minister’s participation in the CHS illustrates the high importance that Pakistan attaches to the SCO, as an important forum for regional security and prosperity, and enhanced engagement with the region,” the statement said.
This year, the SCO CHS will also welcome Iran as a new member of the organization.
Formed in 2001 by Russia, China and former Soviet states in Central Asia, the body has been expanded to include India and Pakistan, with a view to playing a bigger role as counterweight to Western influence in the region.
Kazakhstan will take over the presidency of the SCO after the July summit.