MEA Confirms SCO Civilisational Forum Invitations for November Event

The Ministry of External Affairs has confirmed that India has invited all SCO members, dialogue partners and an observer to the SCO Civilisational Dialogue Forum. The gathering is set to be held in New Delhi in November, and the ministry's statement comes amid questions about Pakistan's participation.

At a media briefing on Wednesday, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated that the invitations had been sent in line with established SCO practice. He said that all member states had been invited, along with dialogue partners and an observer, to the forum's meeting scheduled from November 20 to 22.

The SCO has 10 members: Belarus, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It also includes 15 dialogue partners, namely Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bahrain, Egypt, Cambodia, Qatar, Kuwait, Laos, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Sri Lanka, as well as two observer states, Afghanistan and Mongolia.

Earlier, diplomatic sources had confirmed that Pakistan's National Heritage and Culture Minister, Aurangzeb Khan Khichi, was among those invited to the forum, which is the first of its kind hosted by India under the SCO banner.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the three-day event at Purana Qila, the 16th-century fort in the national capital. Representatives from more than 25 countries are expected to attend.

The Ministry of Culture is partnering with the MEA to organise the programme. The venue choice underscores India's focus on its historical and civilisational legacy while hosting a prominent multilateral cultural initiative.

Participants are expected to explore civilisational ties, cultural diplomacy and joint initiatives in heritage, education and traditional knowledge systems. The idea was put forward by Prime Minister Modi at the 2025 SCO Leaders' Summit in Tianjin and later adopted by the group.

Islamabad has not yet said who will represent Pakistan. A visit by Minister Khichi would be the first by a Pakistani minister to India since the SCO Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Goa in 2023, attended by then Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto.

India has continued to engage with Pakistan within the SCO framework despite strained ties. In September 2026, it sent its SCO National Coordinator, Alok Dimri, to Islamabad for a meeting ahead of Pakistan's SCO chairmanship and the leaders' summit scheduled for August 2027.