India invites Pakistan minister to SCO civilisational dialogue forum in Delhi; Islamabad yet to decide

Diplomatic activity between India and Pakistan has picked up again at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). India has sent Pakistan an official invitation to the SCO's Civilizational Dialogue Forum, to be held in New Delhi from November 20 to 22. Pakistan's Minister for National Heritage and Culture, Aurangzeb Khan Khichi, has been specially invited.

Whether Pakistan will take part is not yet clear. It has been reported that a decision will come only after high-level institutional discussions in Islamabad.

Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan officially confirmed receipt of the invitation at his recent weekly press conference. He said: "We have received the invitation sent jointly by India's Ministry of Culture and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for the event in New Delhi. Who will represent Pakistan at this conference, or whether a delegation will be sent at all, will be decided only after deep consultation with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the country's various security and diplomatic institutions."

In keeping with multilateral practice, India sent the invitation to this cultural forum to all SCO member states on October 28. The event will be held at the historic Purana Qila complex in New Delhi. The SCO is a regional grouping whose members are India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Belarus. The main aim of the forum is to strengthen regional culture and historical ties.

The invitation comes at a time when diplomatic and military relations between the two countries are extremely tense. It is being seen as the first occasion since the military clash between the two countries in May 2025 that a senior Pakistani minister has been invited to India.

On April 22, 2025, 26 innocent civilians were killed in a brutal terror attack in Pahalgam. The attack was traced to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. In response, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The four-day military conflict ended on May 10 with an understanding between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMO) of the two countries.

India has taken a firm stand against cross-border terrorism and the financing of terrorism at every SCO meeting. India's clear position has been that all countries must take a firm stand against terrorism without double standards.

The political circles of Asia are now watching whether Aurangzeb Khan Khichi will attend the conference. If Pakistan decides to send its minister to India, a new door could open in the broken chain of dialogue between the two countries. Given political pressure at home and the views of the military establishment, it will be important to see what stand the Shehbaz government takes.