Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to visit Kyrgyzstan for SCO defence ministers' meeting next week
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to visit Kyrgyzstan for SCO defence ministers' meeting next week")
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Photograph: (AFP)
For India, the meeting offers an opportunity to strengthen defence diplomacy in Central Asia, a region where New Delhi has been expanding its footprint through bilateral partnerships and infrastructure projects.
New Delhi: India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to travel to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, next week to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers' meeting. The meeting on 28th April will see defence ministers of the grouping gathering to discuss evolving threats, including terrorism, extremism, as well as broader geopolitical tensions.
The SCO, founded in 2001 by China, Russia, and Central Asian nations, has grown into a major grouping in the last 2 decades, especially with the inclusion of Iran in 2023 under Indian presidency. It serves as a key platform for security and economic cooperation across Eurasia. Defence ministers typically discuss military-to-military ties, counter-terrorism strategies, joint exercises, and intelligence sharing.
For India, the meeting offers an opportunity to strengthen defence diplomacy in Central Asia, a region where New Delhi has been expanding its footprint through bilateral partnerships and infrastructure projects.
India and Kyrgyzstan maintain long-standing defence ties, including joint training programmes and officer exchanges. Recent interactions, such as the India-Kyrgyzstan Joint Working Group on defence cooperation, have focused on enhancing technical exchanges and industrial partnerships.
In previous SCO forums, the Indian Defence minister has called for decisive action against radicalisation and cross-border terrorism, positions expected to feature prominently again.
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No details are available on the bilateral schedule of the Defence Minister so far. China's Defence Minister Dong Jun is also scheduled to attend, along with counterparts from other member states, Chinese media has confirmed. Kyrgyzstan, which is the president of the grouping this year, will be hosting foreign, NSA-level meetings as well. Later in the year, it will host the SCO Summit.
