Rajnath Singh leaves for Tajikistan for SCO meet, to talk on defence cooperation

New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh left for Tajikistan for Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) annul meet, where he is to appraise about measures needed to eradicate terrorism in the region.

Sources said he would also be talking about challenges at the Indian borders during the annual meeting of the Defence Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states.

He is on a three-day visit to Dushanbe in Tajikistan from July 27 to July 29.

In the annual meeting, defence cooperation issues among the SCO member states are discussed and a communique is expected to be issued after the deliberations.

During his visit to Dushanbe, Rajnath Singh is also expected to meet his Tajik counterpart Col. Gen. Sherali Mirzo to discuss bilateral issues and other issues of mutual interest.

Tajikistan is chairing the SCO this year and hosting a series of Ministerial and official-level meetings.

Singh's address at the meeting is slated for July 28, 2021.

The organisation comprises eight member states -- India, Kazakhstan, Russia, Tajikistan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. India became a member of the SCO in 2017.

The defence ministers of all eight SCO member nations are expected to discuss on regional security challenges like terrorism and extremism. They will also deliberate upon ways to deal with them collectively.

The organisation is seen as a counterweight to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It has emerged as one of the largest trans-regional international organisations.

It accounts for almost 44 per cent of the world population stretching from the Arctic Ocean to the Indian Ocean and from the Pacific Ocean to the Baltic Sea.

The organisation's aim is to maintain peace, stability and security of the region.

Last year, the meeting took place in Russia's Moscow. Then the meeting took place under the shadow of a border dispute between India and China.