Indo-Pak Relations and the SAARC Summits

Smruti S. Pattanaik

Dr Smruti S Pattanaik is a Research Fellow (SS) at the MP-IDSA. Her area of specialisation is South Asia. Her current research project is titled as “India’s Response to China’s… Continue reading Indo-Pak Relations and the SAARC Summits read more

The uncertainties regarding regular SAARC meetings have clouded the prospect of regional cooperation. Though India has been accused as the main culprit, other member-countries are no less responsible for the organisation’s lack of progress. This article analyses how the SAARC process has in fact given a fillip to a better understanding between the member-countries; how Indo-Pak relations have influenced SAARC summits and how the latter has contributed to the furthering of the two countries’ relations notwithstanding the fact that the bilateral disputes are out of the purview of the SAARC agenda. The article also focuses on how the inclusion of bilateral problems would derail the SAARC process.