PM Modi in Uzbekistan for SCO meet, bilaterals lined up with Russian, Iranian Presidents

Sandeep Dikshit

New Delhi, September 15

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold bilaterals with the Russian, Iranian and Uzbek Presidents, besides attending the summit meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Friday during a compact 24-hour visit to Samarkand.

PM Modi reached Samarkand in Uzbekistan late Thursday evening, being perhaps the only SCO leader to skip the ceremonials that included a boat ride through a bedecked city and a gala dinner. On arrival, he was received by Uzbekistan PM Abdulla Aripov.

Won’t endorse china’s BRI plan

• India will be the only country to stay away from endorsing the reference to China’s Belt and Road Initiative which is expected to be mentioned in the SCO’s Samarkand Declaration

PM Modi along with other leaders of the SCO, whose many members are in conflict, will consider its expansion from the current eight to include Iran. SCO observer Belarus wants to become a full member as do Afghanistan and Mongolia. From the neighbourhood, the Maldives and Nepal are also keen to be associated as dialogue partners or observers. With the Taliban not invited, Afghanistan’s case will remain in limbo.

India expects the discussions to cover topical regional and international issues, the regional security situation, strengthening of connectivity and trade enhancement, said Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra at the pre-departure meeting. But an organisation whose several participants are either in conflict situation or have serious border disagreements, of interest will be the bilaterals, especially if PM Modi will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping or Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, who has arrived in Samarkand along with his Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. Russian and Iranian media have confirmed that Vladimir Putin and Ebrahim Raisi have meetings lined up with PM Modi in the short window on Thursday.

Kwatra said the centricity of Central Asian countries is an important pillar of the SCO. “India’s regional interests in the SCO are associated with cooperation with the member countries, cooperation with the five countries of Central Asia within those member countries. We believe that it is not central to any one country but to the region,” he observed.

India will also be the only country to stay away from endorsing the reference to China’s Belt and Road Initiative which is expected to be mentioned in the SCO’s Samarkand Declaration.

The SCO essentially focuses on topics of interest that are topical to the region and doesn’t go into the details of bilateral issues between the two countries, he said when asked about the conflict between SCO members.