Kyrgyzstan's Chairmanship 2025‑26 Highlights India’s Role in SCO Summit Prep

As Kyrgyzstan steers the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation through its 2025‑26 chairmanship, New Delhi is intensifying its diplomatic outreach. Foreign Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh’s upcoming trip to Cholpon‑Ata on July 23 places India at the heart of the SCO’s preparatory work for the Bishkek summit.

The Foreign Ministers Council, convened in the capital’s resort area, will examine the progress of SCO‑wide projects in security, trade, transportation and cultural exchange. Ministers will also consider broader geopolitical issues, ensuring that the summit agenda reflects collective priorities.

India’s participation is expected to shape several summit documents, including a joint declaration on counter‑terrorism cooperation and a roadmap for enhanced connectivity across Central Asia. The Indian side will push for stronger mechanisms to combat extremism, a stance echoed earlier by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh at the April defence summit.

Bilateral side‑meetings are on the programme, offering India the chance to deepen ties with both founding members – China and Russia – and newer entrants such as Pakistan, Iran and Belarus. Economic partners will discuss rail and road link projects that could boost trade volumes.

Kyrgyzstan’s President Sadyr Japarov, in outlining the chairmanship theme “SCO 25 years: Sustainable peace, development and prosperity together,” invited member states to translate the slogan into concrete actions. The upcoming council in Cholpon‑Ata is seen as a critical step toward that ambition.

The Indian delegation follows cultural minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat’s recent signing of a protocol for cultural exchange programmes for 2026‑27, underscoring a holistic approach that blends security, culture and economic cooperation within the SCO framework.