Kathmandu- Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met with his counterpart PM Nawaz Sharif, when the leaders of the South Asian nations were at an informal retreat in Dhulikhel, on the concluding day of the SAARC summit.
The two leaders shook hands and met briefly during the retreat. Nepali Prime Minister Sushil Koirala appealed to the leaders of both countries to hold talks with each other, in an attempt to salvage the derailed summit, according to Indian media.
Even yesterday at the summit, PM Modi and Sharif did not even look at each other while sharing the dais and have shared cold vibes since the beginning of the SAARC summit. The Pakistani PM will leave from Kathmandu today in the evening, earlier than scheduled, and will miss a banquet and a meeting with the Nepal President.
All eight South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) leaders expressed frustration on Wednesday with the slow pace of progress towards greater regional integration, which new Afghan President Ashraf Ghani called a failure of political will.
Modi held one-on-one talks with every SAARC leader except Pakistan`s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday, with both sides saying it was up to the other to request a meeting.
"The idea behind the SAARC retreats is basically to create a relaxed environment in which leaders can speak freely. That`s why retreats are there," said the Indian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "I think there will be a conversation (between Modi and Sharif)."
Analysts have blamed SAARC`s failure on the mutual mistrust between Pakistan and India, which has taken a more assertive stance toward its northern neighbor since the election of a new Hindu nationalist government in May.