India to host 3 more SCO ministerial meetings this month, NSA meet on 29th March

India, as the current chair of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), will host three important ministerial meetings this month.

The first meeting of Energy Ministers is scheduled for March 14 and will be held virtually.

The Sports and Youth Affairs Ministers' Meeting will be held on March 15 in New Delh. While the Tourism Ministers' Meeting is set to take place in Kashi, also known as Varanasi, on March 17.

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Kashi is the first-ever SCO world cultural and tourism capital for 2022-23, adding to the significance of the Tourism Ministers' Meeting. This month marks the first time since India took over the SCO presidency last year that ministerial meetings of the grouping have commenced.

Later this month, on March 29, India will host the highly anticipated SCO National Security Advisers' meeting, the format of which is yet to be determined. The meeting will be chaired by India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

India recently hosted the SCO Chief Justices' meetings with representatives from various countries in attendance. Notable absence was Pakistan with their Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial missing the in-person meeting due to scheduling conflicts. However, Justice Munib Akhtar of the Supreme Court of Pakistan attended virtually.

The in-person attendance included Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Lebedev, Chief Justice of Russia; Aslambek Mergaliyev, Chairman of the Supreme Court of Kazakhstan; and Zamirbek Bazarbekov, top Judge of Kyrgyzstan. Iran, the newest member of the grouping, was also present and represented by Dr. Mohammad Mossadegh Kahnamoui, the first deputy of the head of judiciary.

ALSO WATCH | What made India join the SCO?

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is a major regional powerhouse that was established over two decades ago with the aim of promoting economic, political, and military cooperation among its member nations. The organisation comprises eight member countries, namely Russia, India, China, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, and covers over 60 per cent of the Eurasian landmass, with a population of more than 40 per cent of the world's inhabitants and an economy that accounts for 30 per cent of the global Gross Domestic Product.

The SCO's strategic importance has increased significantly with Iran becoming a full-fledged member under Indian presidency. The development has caught the attention of more and more countries from West Asia, who are expressing their interest in joining the organisation as dialogue partners.

New Delhi has had a long association with the grouping before becoming its full member. India was granted observer status at the July 2005 Astana Summit and became a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in 2017.

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