PM Modi reaches Uzbekistan as he begins 2 nation visit to Central Asia

Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Tashkent on Saturday to begin a four-day, two-nation tour of Central Asia, combining a state visit to Uzbekistan with attendance at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Kyrgyzstan.

Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev received the Indian PM at the airport. The welcome marked the start of the first leg of the visit, which officials describe as an effort to deepen India’s strategic partnerships in a region New Delhi regards as part of its extended neighbourhood.

The trip runs from 29 August to 1 September. Mr Modi will hold delegation-level talks with Mr Mirziyoyev in Tashkent on Sunday before flying to Bishkek for the 26th SCO summit on 31 August and 1 September. It is the Indian prime minister’s fourth visit to Uzbekistan.

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In a departure statement issued as he left New Delhi, PM Modi said the India–Uzbekistan strategic partnership had advanced significantly in recent years. He said he looked forward to discussions on trade and investment, digital connectivity, defence and energy, and on aligning India’s Viksit Bharat 2047 vision with Uzbekistan’s development plans. He is also expected to visit the Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial in Tashkent and the Mahatma Gandhi Centre at the Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies.

From Uzbekistan, Mr Modi will travel to the Kyrgyz capital at the invitation of President Sadyr Zhaparov. The SCO meeting marks 25 years of the grouping, of which India has been a full member since 2017.

Indian PM said he would advance India’s priorities of security, connectivity and opportunity, and work with fellow members for a region free from terrorism, separatism and extremism. He is also due to attend the opening of the sixth World Nomad Games.

Ahead of the visit, India’s ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, Birender Singh Yadav, speaking to WION, said that the visit would give “fresh direction” to India–Kyrgyzstan strategic ties. The envoy said defence and security cooperation and people-to-people contacts had “expanded markedly,” including specialised counter-terrorism courses tailored to Kyrgyz requirements and an increase in joint exercises.

The visit comes as New Delhi seeks to strengthen trade, energy and connectivity links across Central Asia while using the SCO platform to press its long-standing concerns about terrorism.