NEW DELHI: Pakistan PM Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, China’s President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko were among the leaders who will participate in the 23rd Meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of States (CHS) being held virtually on July 4.
The Summit will be hosted by India in its capacity as the current Chair of the SCO following the Samarkand Summit on September 16, 2022. The SCO Heads of State will attend the summit at the invitation of PM Narendra Modi, who will also chair the meeting.
India has millennia-old civilisational, cultural and spiritual ties with the SCO region. From Buddhist monks to spice traders, from adventurous explorers to Sufi saints, interaction between India and the SCO member States has led to an exchange of goods, a fusion of ideas, and the introduction of new cuisines and art forms.
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India has been actively participating in the SCO and has been providing substantial support to various mechanisms in the forum. India was granted Observer Status in the SCO in 2005, which was later elevated to full membership in 2017.
Confirming the presence of PM Sharif, Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “PM Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif will participate in the 23rd Meeting of SCO Council of Heads of State (CHS) being held in videoconference format on July 4.”
“The invitation to the Prime Minister to attend the SCO-CHS was extended by the Prime Minister of India in his capacity as the current Chair of the SCO,” the ministry further said.
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At the forthcoming CHS, the leaders are expected to deliberate on important global and regional issues and chart the future direction of cooperation among SCO Member States. This year, the SCO CHS will also welcome Iran as a new member of the organisation.
Confirming the presence of China’s President Xi Jinping, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said, “At the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend via video conference in Beijing the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and deliver important remarks on July 4.”
Meanwhile, Russia and Belarus also confirmed the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko at the multilateral summit.
All the SCO Member States – China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan – have been invited to attend the Summit.
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In addition, Iran, Belarus and Mongolia have been invited as Observer States. Turkmenistan has also been invited as a guest of the Chair. Heads of the two SCO Bodies – the Secretariat and the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure RATS – will also be present. Further, Heads of six international and regional organisations – United Nations, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) – will also attend the meet.
The theme of the Summit is ‘Towards a SECURE SCO’. The SECURE acronym was coined by PM Modi at the 2018 SCO Summit and stands for Security, Economy and Trade, Connectivity, Unity, Respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the environment.
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Ministry of External Affairs said, “India has set up new pillars of cooperation under its Chairmanship – Startups and Innovation, Traditional Medicine, Digital Inclusion, Youth Empowerment, and Shared Buddhist Heritage.”
“In addition, India has worked towards fostering greater people-to-people ties that celebrate the historical and civilisational bonds between our nations. These include the various socio-cultural events hosted by Varanasi under the framework of the first-ever SCO Cultural and Tourist Capital for 2022-23,” MEA added.
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