DD India

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar visited Kyrgyzstan and met President Sadir Zhaparov on October 24. Both sides discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the banking, defence, and energy sectors.

Minister Jaishankar was warmly welcomed when he arrived in Kyrgyzstan on October 24 on a two-day visit to Kyrgyzstan.

Jaishankar said on the social media platform ‘X’, “Glad to meet Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadir Zhaparov. Gave him personal greetings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Discussed cooperation in banking, energy, health and pharma, defence, agriculture, and investment.

Apart from this, Minister expressed India’s support for Kyrgyzstan’s successful chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG). As the current chair of the SCO, Kyrgyzstan is hosting the meeting of the Council of Heads of Government (CHG) of member states.

EAM Jaishankar also met with his Kyrgyz counterpart, Jeenbek Kulubaev, and discussed a variety of topics with him. “It was good to see my old friend Foreign Minister Jeenbek Kulubaev in Bishkek,” he wrote on ‘X’.

Both leaders discussed expanding India-Kyrgyzstan cooperation in trade and economy, development projects, health, and education. They also discussed Afghanistan, West Asia, and connectivity.
He will participate in a conference of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) here and will also meet the top leadership.

Jaishankar will represent Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the meeting of SCO. In this regard, Jaishankar said, looks forward to meaningful exchanges in the SCO, meeting the Kyrgyzstan leadership, and taking forward our bilateral agenda.

Jaishankar will also meet with equivalents from other SCO member countries as well as Kyrgyzstan’s top leadership, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

The SCO grouping comprises China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Founded in Shanghai in June 2001, SCO is an intergovernmental organization. Since its inception, the SCO has mainly focused on regional security issues and its fight against regional terrorism, ethnic separatism, and religious extremism.