As foreign ministers from eight member countries of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation went for a huddle at the ongoing SCO meet in Goa, one gesture from External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar did all the talking on Friday.
His 'namaste' to all delegates, including Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Chinese Foreign Min Qin Gang, stood out. Foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan also reciprocated in equal measure to the Indian Foreign Minister's greeting.
There has been much talk about the visit of Zardari, who became the first foreign minister from Pakistan to visit India in almost 12 years. The video of Jaishankar greeting Zardari was widely shared on Twitter and it appeared to have spread the 'warmth' after some hard talk on Pakistan's 'involvement' in cross-border terrorism.
Twitter users hailed Jaishankar's gesture though it was a departure from usual handshake. On his arrival in the coastal state on Thursday, Zardari had said he looks forward to constructive discussions with his counterparts from friendly countries.
The Pakistan minister was received at the airport by Indian diplomat JP Singh (Joint Secretary, Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran desk). The Pakistan politician is attending the SCO conclave at the invitation of Jaishankar.
"I am happy to arrive in Goa for participating in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. I am leading the Pakistan delegation at SCO and hope that the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) will be successful," Zardari said in a video on Thursday shared by Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson.
EAM Dr S Jaishankar also welcomed SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming for the Meeting on Friday.
Speaking at the meet, he said menace of terrorism has continued unabated and taking our eyes off it would be detrimental to our security interests. Reiterated that there can be no justification for terrorism and it must be stopped in all its forms and manifestations including cross-border terrorism.
"We must not allow anybody - individual or state - to hide behind non-State actors. Underlined that while connectivity is key to progress, it must come with respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all member states. Highlighted that unfolding situation in Afghanistan remains at the centre of our attention and efforts should be directed towards the welfare of the Afghan people," Jaishankar added.
