Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for the Chinese city of Qingdao this morning on a two-day visit. During his stay, Mr Modi will attend the annual meeting of eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, SCO. Today, Mr Modi will hold bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
During their interaction, the two leaders are expected to explore ways to deepen ties in areas of trade and investment besides reviewing the overall bilateral cooperation. The Prime Minister is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with leaders of other SCO member countries.
Before leaving for Qingdao, Mr. Modi expressed excitement on
leading the Indian delegation for their first ever meeting of the SCO grouping as a full member. In a Facebook post, the Prime Minister said, the SCO has a rich agenda for cooperation, ranging from fighting terrorism, separatism and extremism, promoting cooperation in connectivity, commerce and fostering people-to-people relations.
This will be India’s first participation as a full member after joining the grouping last year, which also includes China and Russia as its members. The Qingdao summit is expected to reaffirm the Shanghai spirit of inclusivity and cooperation among member countries.