‘Why Be Rigid, Both Countries Must Think…’: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari

Former Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has vouched for bilateral talks with India, even as India ruled out such a possibility during the ongoing Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Islamabad.

In an interview the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chairman urged both nations to engage in dialogue on the sidelines of the SCO meeting. “Why be so rigid?” he questioned. “Both countries must think about having a bilateral talk on the sidelines of the Shanghai Commission Organisation (SCO) Summit. A conversation is necessary, whether today or tomorrow. Even if it is not in the context of the SCO, both countries have to resume bilateral talks sooner or later.”

Bhutto’s comments come amid heightened tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. His comments came as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in the Pakistani capital to attend SCO’s Council of Heads of Government (CHG) summit.

On Tuesday, Pakistan’s former interim Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said that there is a “deep appetite” in Pakistan to see improvement in its ties with India. Kakar said Pakistan’s military, political parties and various other segments in the country desire forward movement in relations between New Delhi and Islamabad, but at the same time, there is a realisation of the ground realities.

“I don’t think there is any expectation that there would be a breakthrough in bilateral relations,” he said, replying to a question by the Indian media. Asked why Pakistan did not propose a meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries if it seeks to improve bilateral ties, Kakar said the Pakistani establishment is also apprehensive of facing criticism from the opposition parties if it makes such a move. If anyone in this polarised political environment concedes an inch, then there may be fall-out for that, he noted.

There was an overall positivity around Jaishankar’s visit here, said a senior Pakistani official on condition of anonymity.

It is the first time in nearly nine years that India’s foreign minister travelled to Pakistan even as the ties between the two neighbours remained tense over the Kashmir issue and cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

The last Indian Foreign Minister to visit Pakistan was Sushma Swaraj. She had travelled to Islamabad to attend the ‘Heart of Asia’ conference on Afghanistan held on December 8-9, 2015.