Summary The event was aimed at welcoming the two states into the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
(Web Desk) - A meeting held during the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation 2017 Summit revolving around the entry of India and Pakistan into the SCO turned out to be a source of embarrassment for the organisers of the event when a presentation about Pakistan showed the Delhi s Red Fort with the Indian flag as Lahore s Shalimar Gardens.
According to a report published in the Hindustantimes, the event resulted in embarrassment for the management as during a tableau on Pakistan, India s Red Fort in New Delhi was shown as the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore. Particularly embarrassing was the fact that the picture had the Indian flag flying atop the fort, yet the organisers did not realise they were showing the wrong building.
The event took place on Wednesday, with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi, Indian envoy to China Vijay Gokhale, ambassador of Pakistan Masood Khalid and other SCO members in attendance.
According to the report, both Pakistani and Indian officials pointed out the mistake to the organisers of the event, who apologized for the blunder saying that they had failed to check the photos on display as this was the first event regarding India and Pakistan.
Furthermore, the Pakistani and Indian flags will be raised at the SCO headquarters today signaling the entry of the two countries into the organisation.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is an economic, political and security organisation formed in 2001. It initially comprised of six members - China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Pakistan and India have joined the organisation as full members during the SCO Summit 2017.
The SCO involves cooperation on security, economic and cultural matters between the member states. Analysts have said that the SCO was formed to counter the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). The organisation was aimed at preventing the United States to militarily intervene in areas bordering China and Russia. Moreover, there is hope that the entry of India and Pakistan into the SCO would help to bring them closer and allow them to resolve their differences amicably.
