Himalayan News Service

Dhaka, June 12:

Dhaka is happy with the new dates announced for the twice-postponed 13th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to be held here. Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, the current chair of the seven-nation forum, formally announced yesterday that the summit will now be held Nov 12-13. Bangladesh Foreign Minister M Morshed Khan welcomed the new schedule and said he was happy that all other members — India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives — had no quarrel with the dates.

“We are fully prepared to hold the summit,” Morshed Khan said here, adding that the agenda remained the same as fixed earlier. The pre-summit meetings of the seven-nation forum will be held on November 9-11. The senior officials’ meeting will be held on November 9, the secretary-level meeting on the 10th and the SAARC ministerial meeting will take place on November 11 followed by the two-day summit.