Farooq Abdullah confident India-Pakistan will hold bilateral talks during S Jaishankar's Islamabad visit

The External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, is set to visit Islamabad for a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) conclave on October 15 and 16.

National Conference (NC) leader Farooq Abdullah, who has consistently advocated for dialogue between India and Pakistan, expressed optimism that bilateral matters will be addressed during Jaishankar’s upcoming visit to Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.

Abdullah stated, “I hope there will be talks on every issue. Economic issues are important for all of us, and for the world at large. I am sure that bilateral matters will also be discussed,” according to PTI. He added, “I hope the discussions will be friendly and will aim to achieve a better understanding between the two countries.”

However, Jaishankar has already clarified that he will not engage in discussions about India-Pakistan relations during his visit. The former foreign secretary will be in Islamabad for the SCO’s Council of Heads of Government (CHG) conclave on October 15-16.

This visit marks the first high-level ministerial trip from India to Pakistan in eight years. The last such visit was in August 2016, when then Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh attended a SAARC meeting in Pakistan.

Abdullah, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, expressed hope that the longstanding animosities between India and Pakistan would eventually dissipate. “I hope so. One cannot predict what will happen, but I hope and pray that animosities will disappear and there will be a better relationship between the two nations,” he remarked.