NEW DELHI (TIP): There is no confirmation of a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistan counterpart Imran Khan on the sidelines of the summit meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the Ministry of External Affairs declared on Thursday, June 6. The clarification comes just a day before Mr. Modi begins his first round of foreign trips with stops in Maldives and Sri Lanka where sports diplomacy and counter-terror will be on the agenda.

“To the best of my knowledge I am not aware of any bilateral meeting being set up or organized, between PM Modi and Prime Minister Imran Khan at Bishkek,” said Official Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar here. Both the leaders are scheduled to travel to Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic for the SCO summit of 13-14 June.

There has been a series of developments that indicate ongoing efforts to continue with de-escalation of the tension that erupted after the terror attack at Pulwama and the Balakot counter-terror strike.

Despite the lack of confirmation on a meeting with Pakistan, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said India will emphasize on the importance of the “Neighbourhood first” policy as PM Modi will travel to Maldives and Sri Lanka during 8-9 June.

(Source: Agencies)