PM Modi holds bilateral meetings with Presidents of Russia, Uzbekistan, Iran & Turkey on the sidelines of SCO Summit in Samarkand

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the leaders of Russia, Uzbekistan, Iran, and Turkey on the sidelines of the 22nd meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Uzbekistan's city of Samarkand. Discussions were held to deepen bilateral cooperation in various sectors.

During the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the issues of the food, fuel, and fertiliser crisis saying that concrete solutions must be found to tackle these challenges.

He thanked Russia and Ukraine for assisting in the safe evacuation of Indian students during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In the ongoing conflict, Mr Modi underlined the importance of democracy, diplomacy, and dialogue. On the India-Russia relations, the Prime Minister said, both the countries are decade-long partners.

On this occasion, Russian President Vladimir Putin raised the issue of Ukraine, bilateral trade, supplies of Russian fertiliser, cooperation in agriculture cooperation, oil, gas, nuclear energy projects, and visa-free tourist exchanges.

He said, trade between both countries is growing. He said, the supply of Russian fertiliser has grown eightfold which is crucial for India to provide food security to a large population. He invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Russia.

During the India-Uzbekistan bilateral meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in diverse sectors including economic cooperation, trade, and connectivity.

Both the



leaders reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global developments.

On the issue of Afghanistan, the leaders were unanimous in their views that the territory of Afghanistan should not be used for terrorist activities.

Both leaders stressed the need to make concerted efforts to diversify the trade basket and enter into long-term arrangements to promote trade and investment. Connectivity was considered key to unlocking the potential including greater usage of the Chabahar port and the International North-South Transport Corridor. The leaders emphasised cooperation in fields like Information Technology, health care, and higher education.

The opening of Indian educational institutions and the partnership between Uzbek and Indian universities were welcomed during the meeting. The Prime Minister congratulated President Mirziyoyev on the successful SCO chairmanship.

Later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. During the meeting, both the leaders held talks on wide-ranging bilateral relations and reviewed the progress in the development of Chabahar Port. They also discussed international and regional developments including Afghanistan.

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The two leaders discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation in diverse sectors. During the meeting, both leaders reviewed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global developments.