Seven PMs, one vice president to attend SCO moot in Islamabad

Seven prime ministers, including those from China and Russia, will attend a two-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government in Islamabad next week, Pakistan's Foreign Office confirmed on Saturday.

Prime ministers from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan will also be present, along with Iran's First Vice President and India's External Affairs Minister.

The Prime Minister of Mongolia, an SCO observer state, and Turkmenistan's Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers will join as special guests.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will chair the 23rd Council of Heads of Government (CHG) meeting on 15-16 October in his role as the current SCO CHG chair. Bilateral meetings with visiting leaders are also planned on the sidelines of the summit.

“The CHG meeting will review ongoing cooperation in economy, trade, environment, and socio-cultural links,” the Foreign Office said. "Leaders will also adopt organisational decisions to strengthen ties between member states."

This is the first major regional conference Pakistan has hosted in years, prompting heightened security measures in the capital.

The federal government has announced a three-day public holiday in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, following a recent terrorist attack in Karachi that killed two Chinese engineers.

The high-level attendance demonstrates that SCO members remain undeterred by the attack.

Apart from India, whose representation remains at the ministerial level, all other states will be represented by either their prime ministers or vice president.

The SCO, founded in 2001 by China, Russia, and Central Asian nations, aims to promote regional stability and cooperation. It has since expanded to include India, Pakistan, and Iran as full members, with Afghanistan, Belarus, and Mongolia as observers.