External Affairs (EA) Minister Dr. S Jaishankar arrived in Tajikistan's capital on Monday to address a key conference on Afghanistan, where representatives from around 50 countries and international organisations would discuss building regional consensus around the peace process in the war-torn country. "Touchdown in Dushanbe. Look forward to my bilateral visit and attending the Heart of Asia Conference tomorrow," Jaishankar tweeted.

 The minister is expected to meet leaders of other participating countries on the sidelines, according to a March 26 statement from the external affairs ministry. The conference, being hosted in Tajikistan, is focused on strengthening a regional and international consensus for Afghan peace.

However, the highly-anticipated meeting between Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers has not been scheduled so far. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who departed for participation in the conference Monday, had told Dawn that "no meeting has been finalized or requested".

The development comes in the backdrop of understanding the resumption of the 2003 ceasefire between Pakistan and India, reached at the end of February and the meeting held on Indus water sharing after a gap of two years. On Monday, Jaishankar met Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and held a discussion on the Afghan peace process.

"Honour to call on President @Ashrafghani before the commencement of @HeartofAsia_IP Conference. Shared our perspectives on the peace process," Jaishankar tweeted. As per the Ministry of external affairs, the minister had earlier visited Dushanbe in June 2019 to attend the fifth Summit of Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia.

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