Prime Minister’s Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Monday confirmed that Pakistan will be attending the upcoming Heart of Asia conference scheduled to be held in India.
Aziz confirmed Pakistan’s participation while talking to journalists in the federal capital.
The heart of Asia-Istanbul ministerial conference is scheduled to take place in the Indian city of Amritsar on December 4.
“We have started an effective campaign for the cause of self-determination of Kashmiri people,” said the foreign affairs adviser.
Aziz added that 56 countries condemned India’s heavy handed tactics in India-held Kashmir during a conference in Tashkent last week.
The confirmation from the adviser came after media reported that Pakistan had no intensions of staying away from the meeting after all the stakeholders arrived at consensus that there was no point in boycotting the conference since it was about Afghanistan.
When asked to comment on the report, the adviser told reporters here that Pakistan would attend the Heart of Asia conference.
To another question, the adviser also confirmed that a three-member Afghan Taliban delegation was in Pakistan for talks with authorities. However, he would not share the purpose and agenda of the Taliban delegation’s visit.
The announcement came amid growing tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours following the attack on an Indian army base in held Kashmir.
The Foreign Office, in its response after India’s withdrawal from the Saarc summit, termed the Indian announcement as unfortunate in an official statement released.
