India sent invitations to the heads of five Central Asian countries for the Republic Day 2022 parade in New Delhi. The countries are – Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. 

“Formal invitations have been sent to the heads of states and their replies are yet to be received,” an official source told news agency ANI.

Also read: 20 years of Parliament attack: When terror struck India’s citadel of democracy

The move can be seen as an effort aligned with India’s Central Asia policy. After taking over the Prime Minister’s office in 2014, PM Narendra Modi visited all five Central Asian countries in 2015.

The invitation is important for a number of reasons. One, New Delhi has age-old relations with Central Asia in terms of cultural activities, finance, medical tourism and strong diplomatic exchanges. These countries are geographically land-locked and India has advocated better connectivity through the Chabahar port and other aspects.

Also Read | Everything to know about 6 terror attacks that shook India

The invitations were sent amid the ongoing changes in Afghanistan. In November, the National Security Advisors of these five Central Asian countries had attended the regional dialogue on Afghanistan, which was hosted by India. It was also attended by the NSAs of Russia and Iran. 

Also read: “Will become an IAF Pilot”, says deceased Wing Commander’s 12-year-old

The Delhi Declaration of Afghanistan, issued after the meeting, said all eight countries were committed to combat terrorism to ensure that Afghanistan would never become a safe haven for global terrorism.