Prime Minister Modi likely to visit Pak next year to attend SAARC summit, claims Sartaj Aziz

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit Pakistan next year in order to attend the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit, whereas dates for Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit are being worked out, a report said.

While speaking to the press after attending a two-day conference at the 6th Think Tank Forum of Islamic Countries that concluded on Sunday, Sartaj Aziz, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's adviser on National Security and Foreign Affairs, said that Modi will "certainly visit Pakistan next year," reported the Dawn.

The 2016 SAARC summit will be hosted by Pakistan.

The SAARC is an organization of countries located in South Asia, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

On being asked about India-Pakistan ties, Aziz said that the recently-concluded foreign secretary-level talks between the two nations had paved the way for formal talks and added that all matters of common interest will be discussed in the talks, whenever they are started.

He added that although the Indian foreign secretary's visit was on a SAARC agenda, yet they two sides used the opportunity to discuss bilateral issues.

Indian cancelled foreign secretary-level talks between the two nations in August last year after a Pakistani envoy met Kashmiri leaders in New Delhi.