Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is currently in Samarkand, Uzbekistan to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit. Apart from the summit, the PM will also hold bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev during his visit.
India joined the SCO in 2017 and this year’s edition is the first time the summit has adopted an in-person model since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The last time an in-person SCO summit took place was in June 2019, when it was organised in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
Also Read: 3 reasons why SCO summit 2022 is important
This is also the first time since 2019 PM Modi will be coming face-to-face with Chinese President Xi Jinping. While Jingping will be holding a meeting with Putin, Indian authorities have not confirmed if a meeting between him and PM Modi will be taking place or not.
Watch PM Modi’s arrival at the Congress Centre in Samarkand, Uzbekistan here:
The Indian Prime Minister arrived at the Congress Centre in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on Friday morning, September 16, where he was welcomed by President Mirziyoyev. Before leaving for Uzbekistan, PM Modi said that he recalls the visit of the Uzbekistan President to India in 2018 and he is looking forward to meeting him again.
Video footage of the Prime Minister’s arrival at the Congress Centre was shared by the PIB on its social media accounts.
Also Read: SCO Summit 2022: Indian PM Modi’s full schedule
Apart from PM Modi, newly elected Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is also attending the SCO summit in Samarkand. Meanwhile, PM Modi is also expected to hold a meeting with the President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, on the sidelines of the SCO summit.
The SCO has eight full members, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan. The 2022 edition of the summit will see two sessions, one restricted and another open to observers and invitees by the chair country. The restricted session is restricted to only the member countries.
