EAM S Jaishankar to attend ‘Heart of Asia’ conference in Tajikistan

File Photo (Credits: IANS)

Dushanbe: The External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to attend ‘Heart of Asia’ conference on Tuesday (March 30) in Tajikistan’s capital city. The EAM Jaishankar’s three-day visit to Tajikistan is focused on strengthening a regional and international consensus for Afghan peace. This year’s ‘Heart of Asia’ conference will be the ninth ministerial conference. 

Jaishankar will be attending the conference at the joint invitation of his counterparts from Afghanistan and Tajikistan. This conference is a joint initiative of the Republic of Afghanistan and the Republic of Turkey and was officially launched in 2011 at a conference hosted by Turkey in Istanbul.

The external affairs minister is also expected to conduct meetings with the leaders of other participating countries on the sidelines, as per the statement from the external affairs ministry.

"Honour to call on President @ashrafghani before the commencement of @HeartofAsia_IP Conference. Shared our perspectives on the peace process," Jaishankar had tweeted earlier.

Honour to call on President @ashrafghani before the commencement of @HeartofAsia_IP Conference. Shared our perspectives on the peace process. pic.twitter.com/6s8HuTwkJO — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) March 29, 2021

However, the highly-anticipated meeting between Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers has not been scheduled so far. The Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi was reported by Dawn news saying that "no meeting has been finalised or requested".

No meeting has been finalised or requested with India on the sidelines of 'Heart of Asia' conference at Dushanbe, Tajikistan, reports Pakistan media quoting Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (file photo) pic.twitter.com/KZtvi4e3Hy

— ANI (@ANI) March 30, 2021

Additionally, on Monday, Jaishankar held a meeting with Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani to discuss Afghan peace process. Last week, Haneef Atmar, Afghan Foreign Minister, visited India and held numerous meetings with Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval.

Earlier, the MEA statement had revealed that both the nations reviewed the Troika Peace Meeting in Moscow and assessed the final declaration of the meeting as positive for strengthening and advancing the peace process.