Hindu-majority India and Muslim-majority Pakistan have fought three wars since both won independence from Britain in 1947, and came close to a fourth in February after a suicide attack by a Pakistan-based militant group killed at least 40 Indian police in the contested Kashmir region. An Indian government statement on Monday said the leaders of Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal, and Bhutan – all members, with India, of the little-known Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) – have been invited to Modi’s swearing-in. “This is in line with Government’s focus on its ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy,” a government spokesman said.
