SCO summit: Modi to attend summit in Samarkand with Xi, Putin, Shehbaz on September 15 and 16

As per media sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Samarkand, Uzbekistan, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization conference on September 15 and 16. After the SCO summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, in June 2019, this will be the first summit to take place in person. According to the current vacation itinerary, the Prime Minister […]

As per media sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Samarkand, Uzbekistan, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization conference on September 15 and 16.

After the SCO summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, in June 2019, this will be the first summit to take place in person.

According to the current vacation itinerary, the Prime Minister will probably leave for Samarkand on September 14 and return on September 16.

India’s participation at the summit is crucial since, after the Samarkand summit, it will take up the rotating chairmanship of the SCO. From September 2023, Delhi will rule over the organisation for a full year. Thus, India will host the SCO summit the following year, which will include participation from the presidents of China, Russia, and Pakistan, among others.

The Prime Minister’s trip to Samarkand will be extensively scrutinised for potential side talks between the two leaders.

The world leaders scheduled at the conference are Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Although there has been no formal announcement on the bilateral meetings, it is anticipated that the leaders will be in the same room for both the summit and the leaders’ lounge.
The most recent bilateral encounter between Modi and Xi took place in November 2019 during the BRICS summit in Brazil.

Following the military clash between Indian and Chinese forces at the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh in May 2020, relations between the two nations have taken a hit.

The two sides now have the chance to engage at the highest level following the pullout of Chinese and Indian forces from Patrolling Point 15, one of the final areas of conflict in the Gogra-Hot Springs area.

However, how well the disengagement process goes will have a big impact. It began on Thursday and is expected to end on Monday (September 12).

Meetings between the prime minister and Raisi and Putin are reportedly a possibility.

According to sources, the conference is likely to cover the geopolitical crisis brought on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its effects. Since several SCO members are neighbours of Afghanistan, the situation there under the Taliban government will also be discussed.

According to officials, there will undoubtedly be a meeting between the Prime Minister and President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

In Samarkand, 300 kilometres from Tashkent, preparations for the SCO summit have been ongoing for the past six months.

In June 2001, the SCO, an intergovernmental organisation, was established in Shanghai. Presently, it consists of eight Member States (China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan), four Observer States (Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, and Mongolia), six Dialogue Partners, and one Associate Member (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Turkey).

Egypt, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia were appointed discussion partners in 2021 when it was decided to begin the process of Iran becoming a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The SCO has concentrated chiefly on regional security problems, and its battle against regional terrorism, ethnic secession, and religious extremism since its founding in 2001. The development of the region is another priority for the SCO.

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