ISLAMABAD: The top leaders of India and Pakistan, Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif, are expected to meet at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan,  diplomatic sources said.

The SCO summit, which is slated for September 15–16, will bring together organisation officials to talk about regional concerns, as per reports.According to the sources, Sharif will attend the meeting, where he is likely to meet Modi as well as the presidents of China, Russia, and Iran.

The sources also said that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Foreign Ministers HAD reaffirmed at their meeting on July 28 that the SCO heads will attend the summit.

Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto, who was present at the Tashkent summit, claimed that a bilateral meeting between the leaders of Pakistan and India is not planned.

He had said, "There are no plans for any meetings between Indian and Pakistani prime ministers in September," adding that both India and Pakistan are SCO members and only interact within the context of the group's general activities.

Bilawal recollected that after 2019, constructive discussion with India became tough, while statements based on Islamophobia by Indian officials are further creating hurdles in dialogue.

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