Chinese President Xi Jinping and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday discussed deepening their strategic cooperation as both Beijing and Islamabad keenly watched Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarking on his record third term with a swearing-in ceremony to be attended by all his South Asian neighbours.
Pakistan would be the only country to be conspicuously absent from the Sunday event in New Delhi to be attended by all other leaders from SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations.
Heads of state from Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bhutan, Seychelles and Mauritius have responded positively to attend Modi’s swearing ceremony at a time when China seeks to expand its footprint in India’s neighbourhood wooing those countries with massive investments, much to the chagrin of New Delhi.
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