Islamabad: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will lead the Pakistan delegation to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) being held on May 4-5 in Goa, India, Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch confirmed on Thursday.
The foreign minister is attending the SCO CFM meeting at the invitation of the current Chair of SCO CFM, Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs of the Republic of India.
“Our participation in the meeting reflects Pakistan’s commitment to the SCO Charter and processes and the importance that Pakistan accords to the region in its foreign policy priorities,” the spokesperson said. She said that Pakistan is currently preparing for the meeting.
Bilawal also attended the last meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers held in July last year in Tashkent.
She said Pakistan continues to participate in SCO meetings in keeping with our long-standing commitment to the group.
Minister of Climate Change Sherry Rehman represented Pakistan at the 4th SCO Meeting of Heads of Ministries on Environmental Protection. The meeting was held online in New Delhi on April 18.
The spokesperson stated that the National Disaster Management Authority director virtually attended the SCO Expert Meeting of Heads of Agencies for Prevention and Elimination of Emergency Situations while today Muhammad Idrees Mahsud, Member of Disaster Risk Reduction, is virtually participating in an SCO meeting.
Sudan situation
About the worsening situation in Sudan, the FO spokesperson said, “We continue to follow the worrying developments in Sudan and are closely monitoring the safety and security of the Pakistani community there”.
“Our Embassy in Sudan remains in close and constant contact with our community and will continue to facilitate them. The well-being of Pakistanis remains a key priority of the Government of Pakistan and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”
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