Defence Minister to attend SCO Defence Ministers’ meeting at Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Tags: International News

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will attend the SCO Defence Ministers’ meeting at Tashkent in Uzbekistan on 24 August.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• He will attend the Annual Meeting of the Defence Ministers' of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Member States.

• Chinese Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe and Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu are also expected to attend the SCO meeting.

• Other defence ministers of member countries of the grouping will also attend the meet.

• The SCO Defence Ministerial meeting is taking place about three weeks before the annual summit of this grouping.

• The annual summit will be held in Samarkand on September 15-16.

• During his visit to Tashkent, the Defence Minister will call on the Defence Minister of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Lieutenant General Bakhodir Kurbanov.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

What is Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) ?

• It is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation.

• It was founded in 2001.

• The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and came into force in 2003.

• It is a Eurasian political, economic and military organisation.

• Its aim is to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.

• China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – were founding members of the SCO.

• Official Languages - Russian and Chinese

• Chairmanship - On the basis of rotation for a year by Member States