India and Pakistan have been drawn in group A with Nepal and Kuwait at the 2023 SAFF Championship draw held in New Delhi on Wednesday.
The tournament is scheduled to be held in Bengaluru from June 21 to July 4.
The other group will consist of Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan and Bangladesh.
Defending Champions and the hosts India won its eighth title in 2021 by defeating Nepal in the final.
Kuwait and Lebanon, despite not being a in South Asia, were invited as guest teams to make the event more competitive.
Sri Lanka is not eligible to participate in the competition owing to its suspension by the world governing body FIFA, while Afghanistan withdrew from SAFF and joined Central Asian Football Federation.
Pakistan is returning to the tournament after it missed the 2021 edition where it was serving suspension from FIFA which was lifted last year.
SAFF Championship 2023 Draw:
Group A - India, Kuwait, Nepal and Pakistan
Group B - Lebanon, Maldives, Bhutan and Bangladesh