ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will represent Pakistan at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Council of Heads of Government (SCO-CHG) meeting to be held in Beijing on Tuesday (today).
The foreign minister is accompanying Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during his two-day visit to China from November 1-2.
According to Foreign Office, the SCO-CHG will be held in a virtual format owing to the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.
The CHG will be chaired by the Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, Li Keqiang and attended by the heads of government from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Heads of government of SCO Observer States, including Belarus, Iran and Mongolia will also attend the meeting.
“Pakistan attaches great significance to the SCO, an important trans-regional multilateral organization, representing almost half of the world population with over 24 percent of the global GDP,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.
It added that Pakistan’s membership of SCO reflects our interest for further enhancement of our relations with regional countries, aimed at increasing trade and economic cooperation through enhanced connectivity.
The Council of Heads of Government is the second highest forum in Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that focuses primarily on the areas of trade, finance, commerce and socio-economic cooperation among SCO member states.
SCO’s cardinal objectives include promoting mutual trust and good-neighborly relations among member states, strengthening regional peace, security and stability.
The upcoming CHG meeting will deliberate upon vital regional and global issues of interest, adopt a Joint Communiqué and approve the SCO’s budget for 2023. It will also discuss a comprehensive matrix for productive cooperation in trade and economy, transportation and connectivity, science & technology, climate change, culture, energy and tourism.
Besides Pakistan, SCO member states include China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and India. Meanwhile, India External Affairs Ministry stated in a statement that Jaishankar will represent India in virtual meeting of the SCO-CHG.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022