CNN Central News & Networks / ITDC India ePress / ITDC News /Agencies/ Delhi: New Delhi. For the first time after Operation Sindoor, India has invited a senior Pakistani minister to attend an international event to be held in New Delhi. Pakistan’s National Heritage and Culture Minister Aurangzeb Khan Khichi has been invited to the first Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Civilization Dialogue Forum. The event is scheduled to be held in New Delhi from 20 to 22 November 2026.
According to diplomatic sources, India has invited all ten SCO member countries to the forum. Its objective is to promote cultural dialogue among member countries, highlight shared heritage and strengthen mutual understanding through art, literature, traditions and historical ties. The event will be organised jointly by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of External Affairs.
The invitation has been extended at a time when bilateral relations between India and Pakistan have remained tense after Operation Sindoor in May 2025. India launched the military operation after the Pahalgam terror attack. Despite this, both countries have continued participation in multilateral platforms such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
If Aurangzeb Khan Khichi visits India, it will be the first visit by a senior Pakistani minister since the Goa visit of Pakistan’s then foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in May 2023. Bilawal Bhutto had attended the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting at that time.
Pakistan has not yet confirmed whether Khichi will attend the event. India’s invitation is part of the initiative to invite all member countries under the SCO’s multilateral programme. It would be premature to view it as a sign of change in bilateral relations between the two countries.
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