Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday stressed upon the need for reaching a common point between India and Pakistan, especially on climate change and terrorism. Amid the ongoing SCO meet, Bhutto said that the two nations should learn from the success of Shanghai Cooperation Organization and initiate talks.
“A conversation is necessary, whether today or tomorrow, both countries have their opinions on differences but why should we forget that Pakistan and India are the two most-stressed countries due to climate change,” the Pakistan People’s Party chairman told ARY news.
“Terrorism is also a reality, whether they (India) blame us (Pakistan) and we blame RAW (India’s intelligence agency), but the issue exists, so if we engage, we will somehow reach a common point and save precious Indian and Pakistani lives,” he added.
He further expressed hope that the Indian Ministry of External Affairs would engage with Pakistani media and answer their questions, just as he did during his visit to India for the SCO Summit in 2023.
He said that while the Indian minister might bring up terrorism allegations against Pakistan that align with the Indian narrative during this multilateral summit, Pakistan, as the host, would refrain from responding in order to ensure the meeting’s success.
Meanwhile, former caretaker Pakistani PM Anwaar ul Haq Kakar also commented on India-Pakistan relations saying, “As far as Pakistan-India relations are concerned, I don’t think it is overshadowing it, rather it is contributing towards multilateral engagement which includes of course India. India is one of the responsible, important players on this forum and it is diversified engagement which Pakistan is looking for.”
Foreign minister S Jaishankar met Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif during an informal dinner ahead of the SCO meet. The two leaders exchanged pleasantries.