India has extended an official invitation to Pakistan to participate in the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) 'Civilization Dialogue' scheduled to be held on November 20-21 in New Delhi. Pakistan's national heritage and culture minister, Aurangzeb Khan Khichi, has been invited to attend the high-profile multilateral event. Indian authorities have reiterated that bilateral geopolitical tensions are kept distinct from multilateral engagements within the regional bloc.
The diplomatic relationship between India and Pakistan has experienced severe chill following security incidents in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam and subsequent counter-terrorism operations. Against this backdrop, a potential visit by a Pakistani federal minister to New Delhi would mark a notable diplomatic development. Previously, in 2023, Pakistan's then-foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited Goa to attend an SCO foreign ministers' meeting. Should the current Pakistani minister accept the invitation, it would represent a rare high-level ministerial visit in recent years.
According to Indian official sources, the conference will take place at the historic Purana Qila in New Delhi, a fortification built by Mughal Emperor Humayun in the 16th century. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the summit. Government insiders emphasize that the SCO operates primarily as a multilateral framework where bilateral disputes do not dictate participation, maintaining India's consistent policy of engaging constructively in broader regional platforms.
Indian authorities remain optimistic that Pakistan will accept the invitation and send a delegation to the summit. Groundwork for this diplomatic outreach was laid last September when India's national coordinator for the SCO, Alok Dimri, visited Islamabad. That marked the first official visit by a senior Indian government representative to Pakistan in two years. With Pakistan slated to assume the rotating chairmanship of the SCO next year, Dimri's previous discussions in Islamabad had touched upon connectivity, trade, and regional cooperation, setting the stage for ongoing diplomatic exchanges.
