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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi and Shah Meer Baloch in Islamabad

Pakistani minister flies to India for first visit by a senior official in 12 years

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari shaking hands with another man in front of a plane
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, left, is greeted on arrival at Goa international airport in India on Thursday. Photograph: Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs/AP

Pakistan’s foreign minister, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, arrived in Goa on Thursday, the first visit to India by a senior Pakistani official in 12 years.

Yet few held out hope that the trip signalled efforts for reconciliation between the two neighbours and rivals. Speaking as he boarded the plane to Goa, where India is chairing the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) council of foreign ministers on Friday morning, Bhutto Zardari emphasised that his presence would be “focused exclusively on SCO” and avoided any mention of India.

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