Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Uzbekistan during the first leg of a four-day foreign tour starting Saturday, where he will hold talks to strengthen bilateral ties. Subsequently, he will travel to Kyrgyzstan to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The Ministry of External Affairs stated that during the first leg of the visit, Modi will tour Uzbekistan from August 29 to 30, where he will deliberate on ways to further strengthen bilateral relations across various sectors.
The Ministry said that from Uzbekistan, the Prime Minister will travel to Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, to attend the SCO summit. Extensive discussions regarding the evolving security situation in the region are expected to take place at this summit. It added that Prime Minister Modi will address the summit, outlining India’s priorities concerning security, connectivity, and opportunities. Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif are among the leaders likely to attend the summit. This year also marks the 25th anniversary of the SCO’s establishment. India has been a full member of the organization since 2017. The Ministry of External Affairs stated, “The Prime Minister will address the summit, where he will outline India’s priorities regarding security, connectivity, and opportunities on this platform.” Siby George, Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said at a press briefing that the SCO was established primarily to combat terrorism, separatism, and extremism—challenges that persist to this day. Modi will also hold bilateral meetings with SCO leaders on the sidelines of the summit.
It is reported that Putin will be among the leaders with whom the Prime Minister will hold separate bilateral meetings during the summit. The Prime Minister will also attend the opening ceremony of the 6th World Nomad Games, a celebration of Central Asia’s rich cultural heritage. The primary objective of Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Uzbekistan will be to strengthen bilateral relations.
George said, “At the invitation of Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the Prime Minister will pay a state visit to Tashkent on August 29 and 30. This will be the Prime Minister’s fourth visit to Uzbekistan.” He added that Prime Minister Modi would hold delegation-level talks with President Mirziyoyev to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two nations.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the two leaders will review cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, defense, digital connectivity, energy, education, and people-to-people ties, and set the agenda for the way forward. It stated that Modi and Mirziyoyev would also share views on ways to advance their shared development visions—’Viksit Bharat 2047′ (Developed India 2047) and ‘Uzbekistan-2030’. The Prime Minister is also expected to visit the Lal Bahadur Shastri Memorial and the Mahatma Gandhi Centre at the Tashkent State University of Oriental Studies in Tashkent. The Ministry of External Affairs said, “From Tashkent, at the invitation of Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov, the Prime Minister will travel to Bishkek.”
