The 6th Heart of Asia ministerial conference has commenced in the Indian city of Amritsar on Sunday.
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz is representing Pakistan in the two-day summit.
The Indian Prime Minister and Afghan President jointly inaugurated the conference, being attended by around 40 foreign ministers and dignitaries of 14 participating countries.
Indian Foreign Minister (FM) Arun Jaitley welcomed the delegates at the summit. Leaders attending the summit also posed for a family photograph.
According to Foreign Office spokesperson, Pakistan is attending the Heart of Asia Conference due to its commitment to Afghanistan’s peace and stability.
“Despite all negativity, our participation in Heart of Asia conference is quite significant and should be seen as such,” Nafees Zakariya said.
Zakaria also said on Thursday that such meetings “do afford opportunities for meetings on the sidelines. We have said time and again that Pakistan believes in a peaceful neighbourhood, and have always stressed the need for meaningful dialogue as the only viable solution to lasting peace”.
The HoA initiative was launched in 2011 with the objective to boost economic and security cooperation. Its members included Afghanistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the United Arab Emirates.
The Heart of Asia Process initiative has the support of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Finland, Germany, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Britain and the United States.
