- After a hiatus of more than two years, the SAARC process is being revived. Maldives is set to host the 25th session of the SAARC Council of Ministers’ meeting on February 20.
- No high-level meeting of the eight-member grouping has taken place since the 17th summit was held in Addu City in Maldives in November 2011.
- This was primarily due to the turmoil in Maldives and the fact that most of the countries in the region were witnessing elections or were about to go to the polls.
- India to be represented by: External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid
- The next summit of the grouping is scheduled to be held in Nepal.
AGENDA:
- Discussion will be held on the scope for turning the grouping into a vigorous organization like the European Union or the ASEAN
- Ways and means to streamline, rationalise and restructure various SAARC mechanisms will also be debated
- Economic matters such as the implementation of the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA). Afghanistan has also now joined SAFTA. About 20 per cent of intra-SAARC trade is governed by SAFTA.
- The meeting in Maldives assumes significance against the backdrop of a growing realisation among SAARC member states that the association has failed to fulfill the vision for which it was created in 1985 because of the rivalry between its two most important players-India and Pakistan. Other member states have often accused India and Pakistan of turning the grouping into a bilateral forum to settle their political battles and hijacking an institution that was created to ensure speedy development of the region. However, the member countries still believe that there is tremendous scope for turning the grouping into a vigorous organization like the European Union (EU) or the ASEAN.
