Jaishankar to Represent India at SCO Summit Amid Modi's Russia-Austria Visit

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will represent India at the SCO summit in Astana, as Prime Minister Modi focuses on a two-nation trip to Russia and Austria. The summit will address regional security, connectivity, and trade. Modi conveyed India's full support to Kazakhstan's President for the summit's success.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is set to represent India at the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Astana next week, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi will skip the event due to a planned visit to Russia and Austria.

Modi's visit to Russia from July 8 to 9 marks his first trip to the country in nearly five years. Following this, he is likely to travel to Austria on July 9 for a two-day trip. Official confirmation of these visits is still pending.

The upcoming SCO summit on July 3 and 4 will focus on regional security, connectivity, and trade. "The Indian delegation at the SCO summit will be led by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar," stated Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.

Topics such as the situation in Afghanistan, the Ukraine conflict, and enhancing security cooperation among member countries are expected to be key discussion points.

The SCO, which includes India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, is an influential economic and security bloc. India joined as a permanent member in 2017 after being an observer since 2005.

While generally, the Indian prime minister attends the SCO summit, this year, Modi conveyed India's full support for the success of the summit to Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in a phone conversation on Tuesday. Kazakhstan is hosting the summit as the current chair of the SCO, a position India held last year when it hosted the summit virtually.

India has actively worked towards deepening its security cooperation within the SCO, particularly through its Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS).

The SCO was established at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Pakistan and India became permanent members in 2017.

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