ISLAMABAD, Sept 20: Pakistan on Saturday formally invited India’s Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to the Saarc summit scheduled to be held here in January.

A written invitation from Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali was handed to India’s deputy ambassador at the foreign ministry earlier Saturday, an official statement said.

Mr Vajpayee has already indicated he will travel to Islamabad for the summit on Jan 4-6, which was postponed by a year after India failed to confirm its attendance.

The invitation through diplomatic channels follows Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri’s cancellation this week of tentative plans to visit New Delhi to personally invite

Mr Vajpayee. Mr Kasuri decided against travelling to New Delhi after his Indian counterpart Yahwant Sinha reportedly snubbed the proposed visit. India denies snubbing Mr Kasuri, saying they never received a formal proposal. —AFP