SCO Defense Minister’s Meeting: Rajnath Singh Attends

SCO Defense Minister’s Meeting: Rajnath Singh attends the SCO Defense Ministers meeting in Tashkent.

Defense Minister Rajnath Singh attended the annual meeting of Defense Ministers of the member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on Wednesday.

Issues of defense cooperation among SCO member states were among the issues that were discussed during the meeting.

Also, a joint release is expected to be issued later. Singh is also scheduled to address his counterparts.

“Defence Minister Shri @rajnathsingh with Defense Ministers of SCO member countries at the SCO meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan,” the Defense Minister’s Office tweeted along with a picture of the top leaders.

SCO Defense Minister’s Meeting: Rajnath Singh arrived in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 23 August on a three-day official visit.

On the first day of his engagements, Rajnath Singh held bilateral meetings with his Uzbek counterpart Lt Gen Bakhodir Kurbanov, Kazakhstan Defense Minister Colonel General Zhakslyakov Ruslan Zhakslyakov, and Belarusian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin.

The entire spectrum of defense cooperation with the three countries was reviewed during the meetings, with a focus on identifying opportunities for the expansion of mutually beneficial cooperation.

Issues of mutual interest were also discussed.

During his stay in Tashkent, Rajnath Singh will pay homage at the memorial of late Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and will meet the Indian diaspora in Uzbekistan.

Last month, External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar visited Tashkent in 2022 at the invitation of Vladimir Norov, Acting Foreign Minister of Uzbekistan, to attend the SCO Foreign Ministers’ Council meeting.

Apart from India, foreign ministers of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan also participated.

The meeting discussed preparations for the upcoming SCO Summit of Heads of State to be held in Samarkand on 15-16 September and discussed international and regional issues.

EAM also held bilateral meetings with the counterparts of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan and the Secretary General of the SCO on the sidelines of the SCO FMM.