India, Pakistan Foreign Ministers to be in Abu Dhabi, speculation runs rife

Jaishankar, Qureshi to meet UAE Foreign Minister separately

As the foreign ministers of both India and Pakistan are likely to be in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, the behind-the-scenes role the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been playing to bring the two South Asian neighbours back on the table of negotiation has once again come under spotlight.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is likely to leave New Delhi for Abu Dhabi early on Sunday. His counterpart in Pakistan Government, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, already reached the capital of the UAE on Saturday.

Both Jaishankar and Qureshi are visiting Abu Dhabi on invitation from Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Foreign Minister of the UAE.

The visit of the Foreign Ministers of both India and Pakistan to UAE around the same time fuelled speculation about a meeting between the two. Neither New Delhi, nor Islamabad, however, confirmed or ruled out the possibility of such a meeting.

Jaishankar is likely to focus on India-UAE economic cooperation during his meeting with Emirati Foreign Minister. They will also discuss welfare of the people of India living in the UAE, the Ministry of External Affairs stated in New Delhi.

Qureshi will discuss “regional and global issues of mutual interest” during his meeting with Sheikh Abdullah, according to a tweet by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Pakistan Government.