Islamabad, June 14: Stymied in its attempts to host a seven-nation South Asian summit, Pakistan is proposing fresh dates for the summit in December, Foreign Ministry spokesman Masood Khan said today. The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, or SAARC, was to hold its summit in Pakistan in January, but it was postponed indefinitely after India refused to confirm its participation. The summit is cancelled if one of the seven nations cannot participate.
Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka make up SAARC, formed in 1985 to promote trade and economic cooperation in the region.
Khan said the foreign secretaries of the SAARC nations will meet next month in Nepal. India and Pakistan will use the Nepal gathering to arrange separate meetings between their foreign secretaries, Khan said.
Bureau Report