Prime Minister Modi to host first India-Central Asia Summit on January 27

PM Modi will host the first India-Central Asia Summit on January 27, 2022, in a virtual format. The summit will be held with the participation of the Presidents of the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan. This will also be the first kind of engagement of its kind between India and the Central Asian countries at the level of leaders.

According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the first India-Central Asia Summit is a reflection of the growing engagement of India with the Central Asian countries, which are also part of the country’s extended neighbourhood.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host the first meeting of the India-Central Asia Summit, with the participation of the Presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, in a virtual format on 27 January: MEA pic.twitter.com/NTZmb3zV68

— ANI (@ANI) January 19, 2022

First India-Central Asia Summit: What can be expected?

1. During the first-ever India-Central Asia Summit which will be hosted by Prime Minister Modi virtually, the leaders of the Central-Asian countries are expected to discuss steps to take forward India-Central Asian relations to newer heights.

2. The leaders of the countries are also expected to exchange views on the international and regional issues of interest. It might particularly include the evolving regional security situation.

3. India-Central Asia Summit is also symbolic of the significance attached by the leaders of India and the Central Asian countries to an enduring and comprehensive partnership between India and Central Asia.

India-Central Asia partnership:

The establishment of the India-Central Asia Dialogue at the Foreign Minister’s level has provided an impetus to the relations between India and Central Asia. The third meeting of the dialogue was held in New Delhi from December 18-20, 2021.

The participation of the secretaries of the National Security Councils of the Central Asian countries in the Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan which was held on November 10, 2021, also outlined a common regional approach between India and Central Asia on Afghanistan.

Background

Prime Minister Modi had also paid a historic visit to all the Central-Asian countries in 2015, a year after winning the Lok Sabha elections. Subsequently, there have also been exchanges at the high levels at bilateral and multilateral forums between India and Central Asia.