Visit of SCO Secretary General & Uzbekistan Foreign Minister pushes India’s Eurasia agenda

New Delhi: Wider security engagement with Eurasia including Central Asia that enables to safegaurd interests in Afghanistan will be Delhi's focus when its hosts SCO Secretary General and Uzbekistan Foreign Minister this week.
As Taliban and USA inch closer to conclude peace deal and Pakistan eyes to revive its influence in Kabul, India is stepping up its engagement with regional players who are neighbours of Afghanistan. This includes Uzbekistan and Tajikistan besides Iran and Russia.

Expanding security and economic footprints in Eurasia through SCO to balance China is another key priority for the Modi government, indicated persons familiar with the issue. India will host SCO Heads of Governments meet for the first time later this year, ET has learnt.

SCO has an effective counter-terror mechanism named RATS and the grouping of eight that extends from China to Russia is a key tool for Afghan outreach. SCO Secretary General Vladmir Norov will not just engage with the External Affairs Minister but also engage with Commerce & Industry Minister besides industry leaders.

Both the Secretary General and the Uzbek Foreign Minister will address the Raisina Dialogue, India's key foreign policy dialogue, this week.

"The history, civilization and culture of India, have been interconnected with the SCO region for thousands of years. Our shared area needs better connectivity in the modern era. Initiatives like International North South Transport Corridor, Chabahar Port, Ashgabat Agreement, clearly emphasize the focus of India on connectivity. We have also operated Air Freight Corridor between Kabul and Kandahar and New Delhi and Mumbai since 2017," PM Narendra Modi said in his intervention at the 2019 SCO Summit held in Bishkek.

"We should have a vision to strengthen healthy co-operation in our region. The letters HEALTH can be a good template for our collaboration, H for Healthcare Cooperation, E for Economic Cooperation, A for Alternate Energy, L for Literature and Culture, T for Terrorism free society, H for Humanitarian Cooperation, H for Healthcare cooperation," the PM enunciated.