Prime Minister of Pakistan Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Monday afternoon arrived in Kathmandu to reinvigorate the SAARC and to greet the country new leadership. A 32-member delegation is accompanied him. He is the first foreign dignitary to visit Himalayan state after her successful national elections.
During his Nepal visit, Abbasi will congratulate Nepal’s leadership on the successful conclusion of its democratic process, resulting in the formation of a new government, Kathmandu Post reported.
The main purpose of Abbasi’s visit was to take forward the stalled SAARC process, with Pakistan seeking to host the deferred summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at the earliest in consultation with Nepal, the current chair of the regional group.
SAARC last summit was due in 2016 in Islamabad but India, the most influential member in the regional group following her policy to isolate Pakistan refused to attend the summit and pressured Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan not to attend the moot. With this hostile environment, Islamabad has left no option but to postpone the summit.
It is expected that Prime Minister Abbasi during his meeting with his Nepalese counterpart KP Sharma Oli would explore the options to revive the regional block. Two sides would also discuss bilateral cooperation in diverse fields.
