Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to address SCO conclave, focus on regional security challenges

Defence minister Rajnath Singh, who is in Tajikistan capital Dushanbe, will address a conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Wednesday. In his address, Singh is likely to focus on regional security challenges, including terrorism, and ways to deal with it.

The Indian defence minister is also expected to meet his Tajik counterpart Col Gen Sherali Mirzo to discuss bilateral as well as other issues of mutual interest.

Rajnath Singh reached Dushanbe on Tuesday to attend the meeting of the defence ministers of the member states of the SCO. His Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe is also attending the SCO conclave, but no bilateral meeting has yet been scheduled between the two leaders.

Singh and Wei last held bilateral talks in Moscow on 4 September, 2020, on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the defence ministers of the SCO states.

Rajnath Singh's office said on Twitter that the defence minister will be in Tajikistan capital till July 29. Tajikistan is chairing the SCO this year and hosting a series of ministerial- and official-level meetings.

The SCO is an eight-member economic and security bloc and has emerged as one of the largest transregional international organisations. It was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the Presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

India and Pakistan became its permanent members in 2017.

India was made an observer at the SCO in 2005 and has generally participated in the ministerial-level meetings of the grouping which focus mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian region.