Indian FM To Attend 12th SCO Summit In China

New Delhi, June 5, IRNA – India’s External Affairs Minister, S M Krishna, will leave for China on Tuesday on a three-day visit to attend the 12th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit, to be held in Beijing. Krishna is representing Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, at the annual Heads of State summit of the SCO, pti reported. India has an observer status in the SCO since 2005. The External Affairs Minister is also expected to meet Vice Premier of China, Li Keqiang. The SCO, which was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Except for Uzbekistan, the other countries had been members of the Shanghai Five, founded in 1996, after the inclusion of Uzbekistan in 2001, the members renamed the organization. The SCO is primarily centered on its member nations’ Central Asian security-related concerns, often describing the main threats it confronts as being terrorism, separatism and extremism. However evidence is growing that its activities in the area of social development of its member states is increasing fast. India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan have observer status in the SCO. Belarus and Sri Lanka are having dialogue partner status in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)./end