SCO Meet: Modi focuses on situation in Afghanistan, calls for inclusive govt

New Delhi [India], July 4 (ANI): In his address at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) which was held in a virtual format on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that Afghan soil should not be allowed to be used to destabilise its neighbourhood.
Speaking at the SCO heads of the summit meeting, PM Modi said that humanitarian assistance and setting up an elected government in Kabul are major priorities of the SCO.
"The situation in Afghanistan has directly affected the security of the region. India's concerns and aspirations for Afghanistan are at par with other SCO countries. We will have to collectively work for the welfare of the Afghan people. Humanitarian assistance to Afghan citizens, forming an elected and inclusive government, fighting against drug trafficking and terrorism, and ensuring the rights of women, children and minorities- these all are our shared priorities," he said.
Referring to age-old ties that India and Afghanistan share, PM Modi added, "Over the last two decades, India has contributed to the economic and social development of Afghanistan. We have continued to send assistance even after the 2021 episode. It is important that the Afghan soil should not be used to spread instability in neighbouring countries or to encourage extremist ideologies."
PM Modi also noted that security, economic development, connectivity, unity, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and environmental protection are pillars of India's vision for SCO.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, China's President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin among others participated in the summit.
India joined the SCO in 2005 as an observer country and became a full member of the group at the Astana Summit in 2017.
At the SCO Summit in Samarkand in September 2022, India took over the chairmanship of the SCO for the first time from Uzbekistan. (ANI)