Pakistan Calls In Army For SCO Summit Safety; India’s Jaishankar To Attend

Islamabad: The Pakistan government on Friday decided to deploy the army to maintain law and order during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, which the country is hosting for the first time from October 15-16. 

The decision to deploy the army has been taken under Article 245 of the Constitution which empowers the government to call army troops to help the civil administration in maintaining peace, according to a notification issued by the Interior Ministry. 

The ministry said that the federal government is “pleased to authorise the deployment of requisite strength of the Pakistan Army in aid of civil powers from October 5 to 17” in the capital. 

The notification confirmed that the army will oversee the security of key government buildings and the Red Zone in Islamabad. 

While the paramilitary Rangers are already stationed in the capital, the military will take over security duties to further strengthen protection during the summit. 

The federal government has completed its preparations for the event, which will be attended by the heads of state and delegations from the eight member countries of the SCO. 

Meanwhile, the federal government approved a comprehensive plan to ensure foolproof security during the forthcoming huddle of regional leaders. 

During a meeting held on the issue, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said that additional personnel from the Pakistan Army, Rangers, Frontier Corps (FC), and Punjab police will be deployed for security duties at the SCO summit. 

The announcement to deploy the army coincided with India announcing that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will travel to Pakistan to attend the SCO's Council of Heads of Government (SCO-CHG) meeting. 

"The external affairs minister will lead our delegation to Pakistan to participate in the SCO summit which will be held in Islamabad on 15 and 16 October," said Randhir Jaiswal, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, but did not say if Jaishankar would meet any Pakistani leaders on the sidelines. 

This will be the first visit by an Indian foreign minister to Pakistan in nearly a decade. 

The SCO, established in 2001, aims to promote political, economic, and security cooperation in the region.