Sri Lanka’s participation in the 19th SAARC Summit scheduled for November 2016 in Islamabad

[AndrewJin]

This cooperation with or without Pakistan is of very little significance.....my opinion...

 

[coffee_cup]

SAARC without Pakistan
By The New Indian Express

Published: 29th September 2016 04:00 AM

Last Updated: 29th September 2016 07:12 AM

Hopefully, India’s decision to pull out the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation meeting this year will be a nail in the regional body’s coffin. Ever since it was launched in Dhaka with its first meeting in 1985, the platform has been hijacked by the India-Pakistan rivalry. Even the good things that the group comprising Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (Afghanistan joined in 2007) did were always overshadowed by Pakistan’s attempts to stymie any Indian effort. In other words, it was a multilateral platform with a bilateral agenda.

The constant tensions between India and Pakistan was the only issue that mattered at the annual meetings, and everything else paled into insignificance. Given Pakistan’s intransigence against any Indian initiative, the grouping never really achieved more than rhetoric. To take just one case, soon after his swearing in, Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered to build a SAARC Satellite, a gift from India which would serve all the countries of the group. Pakistan was the only country that declined. Eventually, India decided to go ahead with the project, saying that “Pakistan has decided to opt-out of the satellite project. So it cannot be called a SAARC satellite. It will be a South Asia satellite”. The fact, that Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afghanistan quickly followed India’s lead in boycotting the Islamabad summit citing security concerns is a clear indication of how exasperated the members have become with Pakistan’s attempts to dilute the group’s attempts to promote regional cooperation.

When Pakistan nixed attempts to sign a treaty which would ease train and road transshipment among member nations in 2014, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal went ahead and signed a separate treaty, much to Islamabad’s chagrin. While critics might argue that dropping Pakistan from the group would add to its victimhood narrative, the region can certainly do with without Pakistan’s shenanigans.


http://www.newindianexpress.com/opi...thout-Pakistan/2016/09/29/article3632127.ece1

Use the correct map or remove at least the pic man. Pakistan and Indian maps are not correct, see where Kashmir is being shown.

Thanks!

 

[Devil Soul]

Yeah, very much possible....

 

[Luffy 500]

SAARC is shit. Pakistan should make sure it fails as an organization. Countries like BD and bhutan are too irrelevant for Pakistan to care and pakistan should send that message loud and clear like downgrading diplomatic ties or completely breaking it. UK shifted its visa issuing activities for BD from Dhaka embassy to their indian embassy. Pak can do something similar. Simply treat BD as a 3rd rate satellite state and NOT as independent nation of UN.

 

[Sankpal]

Yes...

 

[Jobless Jack]

why not disband saarc ?

south asian countries should independetly do bussiness with india and pak according to their needs

 

[Articulate]

Pakistan cannot be kicked out of SAARC despite the wishes of almost all members.

However a new body can and has been made which will take the role that SAARC should have played. Pakistan has not been brought into it.
It is BIMSTEC.

 

[Riyad]

Pakistan cannot be kicked out of SAARC despite the wishes of almost all members.

However a new body can and has been made which will take the role that SAARC should have played. Pakistan has not been brought into it.
It is BIMSTEC.

Problem is Afghanistan is excluded in BIMSTEC.

Bay of Bengal Initiative for
Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(BIMSTEC)


Flag
Headquarters Dhaka
Membership

• 
  Bangladesh
• 
  Bhutan
• 
  Burma (Myanmar)
• 
  India
• 
  Nepal
• 
  Sri Lanka
• 
  Thailand

Leaders
• Chairmanship Nepal (since 2014)
Establishment 6 June 1997
Website
www.bimstec.org

 

[Articulate]

Problem is Afghanistan is excluded in BIMSTEC.

Bay of Bengal Initiative for
Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(BIMSTEC)


Flag
Headquarters Dhaka
Membership

• 
  Bangladesh
• 
  Bhutan
• 
  Burma (Myanmar)
• 
  India
• 
  Nepal
• 
  Sri Lanka
• 
  Thailand

Leaders
• Chairmanship Nepal (since 2014)
Establishment 6 June 1997
Website
www.bimstec.org

Till now, we were all wondering whether BIMSTEC will be used to replace SAARC. Now that this has happened, effectively BIMSTEC meets will start taking ahead the agenda of SAARC.

BIMSTEC will add Afghanistan the day Afghanistan requests, which will happen now that this has happened.

 

[bongbang]

We should form second SAARC keeping out Pakistan. Add Iran, Myanmar or possibly Indonesia and Malayasia with the new grouping with the other existing members.

 

[Stannis Baratheon]

This cooperation with or without Pakistan is of very little significance.....my opinion...

This corporation itself is of very little significance. Should have sent China a request to join it.

 

[Hamza913]

Go ahead, the group will continue to do jack all.

 

[kobiraaz]

Yes Ban India and Pakistan Both.

Saarc will be far more effective without these two.

We should form second SAARC keeping out Pakistan. Add Iran, Myanmar or possibly Indonesia and Malayasia with the new grouping with the other existing members.

+ Nigeria

 

[AndrewJin]

This corporation itself is of very little significance. Should have sent China a request to join it.

There are many other platforms for cooperation.

 

[Godman]

The summit is already dead with most of the countries boycotting it and India and Pakistan back in limited conflict
Sri Lanka made a intelligent move by pointing out the obvious fact.

We should have joined ASEAN when we had the chance but our decision making was concentrating too much on how it would affect the Non aligned movement and protests from India, China and the Soviet union. We are now stuck with a useless organization that isn't solving the regions problems.
If we joined ASEAN we could have gained better ties with US and protection ,become a industrialized trading country , gain better trade ties with China and Japan in the long run as well

Are you saying that SL will attend the summit even if its not conducive to have it now ?

Even India pulled out of the summit after saying "prevailing circumstances have created an environment that is not conducive to the successful holding of the Summit"

How is SL reason for pulling out any different ?

Denial is a river in egypt. .......... try relaxing your butt muscle for reducing the butt hurt.

Sri Lanka is not boycotting but indirectly asking the summit to be postponed