India is expected to send a three-member team to participate in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) anti-terror exercise in Pakistan next week, sources of TOI have learned. The Pabbi anti-terror Exercise 2021 is being conducted at Pabbi in the Nowshera district from October 3 under the aegis of SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) which seeks to promote counter-terrorism between SCO member-states.
As per the government its participation in this SCO event will not, in any case, change its stand about Pakistan, that it continues to promote cross-border terrorism. India’s presence will be seen as a sign of the importance it attaches to the role of the central Asia-focused regional bloc in security-related issues.
India was the last country to confirm its participation in the exercise which was declared in March early this year following a meeting of the council of RATS in Tashkent.
According to the SCO protocol, Pakistan invited all the member-states (including India) for the exercise. India is likely to be represented by officials of the National Security Council Secretariat in the exercise.
