New Delhi: India and Pakis­tan will come face-to-face in Russia's Sochi next week for the SCO summit. Diplomatic sources from both countries said though that there was no proposal yet for any bilateral engagement on the sidelines of the summit.

While external affairs mi­nister Sushma Swaraj will re­present India at the summit, Pakistan is yet to announce the name of the leader who will head its delegation. Pa­kistan is also likely to be re­presented by its foreign mini­ster Khawaja Asif.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will lead the Chinese dele­gation at the summit. Official sources here said that at the moment it seemed unlikely that Swaraj was going to have any bilateral meeting, or even a pull-aside, with the head of the Pakistani delegation.

India and Pakistan are cur­rently in the middle of intense negotiations meant to facilitate a meeting between alleged Indian spy in Pakistan's custo­dy Kulbhushan Jadhav and his wife. India wants Pakistan to allow Jadhav's mother and an Indian diplomat to accom­pany his wife.

Both India and Pakistan are now full members of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Or­ganisation). While India's membership was strongly backed by Russia, Pakistan's entry into the grouping was ensured by China. India had been an observer at the SCO since 2005. It has generally participated in the ministeri­al-level meetings of the grouping which holds the key to peace and stability in reso­urce-rich Central Asia and Afghanistan.

Counter-terrorism is lik­ely to be the main focus area for Swaraj at the summit, so­urces here said. It is signifi­cant that India and Pakistan, along with the other six mem­ber-countries, will participate in joint exercises against terrorism under Tashkent-based RATS or Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of SCO.

At the Astana SCO sum­mit earlier this year, PM Narendra Modi had sought to corner Pakistan saying that whether it was the issue of radicalisation and recruitment of terrorists or their training and financing, it was impossible to find a solution unless coordinated and strong efforts were made.

Describing terrorism as a major threat to humanity Mo- di had said that India-SCO coo­peration will give a new direc­tion and strength to the fight against terrorism. Taking off: from Modi, Swaraj is expected to again underline India's po­sition that while India was all for connectivity it wanted, such initiatives to not under­mine sovereignty. This is important for lndia in the context of CPEC (China-Pakistan Eco­nomic Corridor) which passes through the disputed Gilgit Baltistan region.

Courtesy: Times Of India, 26, November, 2017