The SAARC summit of 2016 will be cancelled, a senior diplomatic source in Kathmandu has confirmed to The Hindu. The confirmation from Nepal, the current SAARC Chair, came hours after Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan followed India’s decision to stay away from the November summit to be held in Islamabad.
“There is no question of holding the summit if four countries declare their unwillingness to participate. As the current SAARC Chair, Nepal has the responsibility of seeking a solution to such pre-summit disputes but under the current circumstances nothing much can be attempted. We will do the due formalities and will declare the summit of 2016 should be cancelled due to non-participation of member-states,” said a Kathmandu-based diplomatic source.
The atmospherics for the cancellation began building up after Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan sent formal official communications to Kathmandu on September 27 almost immediately after India expressed inability to participate in the summit due to “prevailing circumstances” and stepped up diplomatic pressure on Pakistan after the September 18 attack on the military base in Uri.
Like India that cited “cross-border terrorist attacks in the region” as a reason for boycotting the summit, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan too expressed concern about the same issue in their official notes to Kathmandu.
“The growing interference in the internal affairs of Bangladesh by one country has created an environment, which is not conducive to the successful hosting of the 19th SAARC summit in Islamabad in November 2016. Bangladesh, as the initiator of the SAARC process, remains steadfast in its commitment to regional cooperation, connectivity and contacts but believes that these can only go forward in a more congenial atmosphere,” stated a communication from Dhaka to Nepal which was shared with the media by a source.
A high-level diplomatic source from Bangladesh also confirmed to The Hindu that the formal declaration of the cancellation of the summit is imminent.
The Royal Government of Bhutan, In a similar note to the SAARC Chair, made available to the media, stated that it “shares the concerns of some of the member countries of SAARC” and its “inability” to participate in the SAARC summit.
“While reaffirming Bhutan’s strong commitment to the SAARC process and strengthening of regional cooperation, it notes ‘the concern of the Royal Government of Bhutan on the recent escalation of terrorism in the region, which has seriously compromised the environment for the successful holding of the 19th SAARC summit in Islamabad,” the Bhutanese note said.
Also Read: Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Boycott SAARC Summit
BY M. DIVYA SRI
