ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday called for reviving the long-paralyzed South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), saying deeper economic collaboration and collective responses to shared challenges were essential as the bloc marked the 40th anniversary of its founding charter.

SAARC has been effectively dysfunctional since 2016, when its planned Islamabad summit collapsed after India withdrew following a militant attack it blamed on Pakistan. Islamabad denied involvement, but New Delhi’s decision prompted Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan to pull out, leading to the indefinite postponement of the summit.

Beyond the immediate rupture, SAARC was widely believed to have already become stagnant because of structural issues, including the India-Pakistan rivalry and New Delhi’s pivot toward alternative regional groupings.
Sharif extended his greetings to the peoples and the governments of “all SAARC member states” in a statement circulated by his office.

“When SAARC was established, over four decades ago, it was meant to provide an essential platform, to promote dialogue, foster cooperation and strengthen the bonds that bring our nations together,” he said.

“While these goals have, regrettably, remained elusive due to political considerations within the region, I commend the SAARC Secretariat for striving hard to provide its dedicated assistance as well as for its efforts to advance the organization’s goals and create opportunities for meaningful collaboration among the member states,” he added.

The prime minister noted his administration remained committed to the principles and objectives of the SAARC Charter.

“We believe that genuine cooperation, guided by sovereign equality, mutual respect and constructive engagement, can unlock South Asia’s vast potential and ensure a better tomorrow for all,” he said.

Sharif maintained the region needed stronger economic, digital and people-to-people connectivity to expand trade, investment, innovation and cultural exchange, adding that South Asian states faced shared pressures from poverty, climate-induced natural disasters, food and energy insecurity and public-health vulnerabilities.

These, he continued, required “collective responses based on mutual trust, goodwill and a spirit of cooperation.”

His statement did not directly mention India, though last week, his deputy, Ishaq Dar, urged a “reimagining” of South Asia’s fractured regional architecture, saying an 11-year freeze in dialogue with New Delhi had eroded prospects for long-term stability in one of the world’s most volatile regions.

Dar criticized the paralysis of SAARC, saying “artificial obstacles” needed to be removed for it to resume its role as a platform for economic cooperation, and argued the region would only achieve its political and economic potential if countries committed to cooperation and a future “where connectivity replaces divisions.”