PM MODI PARTICIPATES IN THE SCO SUMMIT 2026 IN BISHKEK

Narendra Modi visited Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, from August 31 to September 1, 2026, to attend the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit. Upon his arrival, he received a warm welcome from the Indian diaspora and paid floral tributes at the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial in Bishkek. This visit to Kyrgyzstan forms the second leg of his four-day Central Asian diplomatic tour, which initially began in Uzbekistan.

This year’s summit is taking place in Bishkek under the motto: Together for Sustainable Peace, Development and Prosperity. The SCO is a China-led 8-member economic and security bloc with India and Pakistan being admitted to the grouping in 2017.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is a Eurasian political, economic and international security organization of ten member states. It focuses on political, economic, security and counter terrorism cooperation.

It is the world’s regional organization in terms of geographic scope and population, covering at least 24% of the world’s total area and 42% of the world population.

The SCO is the successor to the Shanghai Five, formed in 1996 between China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan. In June, 2001, the leaders of these nations and Uzbekistan met in Shanghai to announce the SCO, a new organization with deeper political and economic cooperation.

SCO Summit 2026

PM Modi addressed the 26th SCO Heads of State meeting in Bishkek, emphasizing India's core priorities of regional security, digital connectivity, and economic opportunity. He noted that the 25th anniversary of the Summit was an opportune time to lay the roadmap for the next 25 years, building upon the strong tradition of dialogue and cooperation developed by SCO.

He reiterated India’s position that conflicts cannot be resolved on the battlefield and dialogue and diplomacy are the only way forward. Highlighting that terrorism was a grave threat to humanity, he called for committed action to dismantle the terror ecosystem. He further elaborated that technology, entrepreneurship, innovation, start-ups and people-to-people initiatives open immense opportunities for people in the SCO countries. In this regard, he appreciated the focus on youth engagement under Kyrgyzstan’s presidency.

Besides the Bishkek Declaration, four MoUs, and over twenty decisions and statements were adopted at the Summit in fields ranging from climate, nuclear safety, energy conservation, and combating drug addiction. India led and supported several initiatives which find place in the Bishkek Declaration, such as English in SCO Charter as the Official Language; Civilization Dialogue Forum; Young Scientist Forum; and Young Author’s Conclave.

Bilateral Meetings

PM Modi held crucial bilateral talks with various global leaders attending the summit, including discussions on defence, trade, and regional cooperation.

He talked with Prime Minister of Armenia, Mr. Nikol Pashinyan on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Bishkek. India-Armenia cooperation is all set to grow in defence, IT, space, education, pharmaceuticals and more.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Bishkek and said the world “must move from endless war to an end of war for the benefit of humanity”. President Vladimir Putin showed his satisfaction that Indian-Russian relations continue to strengthen on the basis of the principles of a special and privileged partnership.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit here and discussed ways to further strengthen the bilateral relations. The economic and commercial engagement between India and China constitutes a major component of the bilateral relations with bilateral trade which crossed USD 95 billion last year and is set to cross USD 100 billion this year.

PM Modi held a bilateral meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to review bilateral ties and economic cooperation. He met with Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh to talk about long-standing friendship and mutual cooperation.

Mr Modi met his British counterpart, Prime Minister Keir Starmer; Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim; French President Emmanuel Macron; German Chancellor Friedrich Merz; South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung; Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva; and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. He also interacted with the President of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio, and Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

PM Modi also held talks with Angola’s President and African Union Chair João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, highlighting India’s valued friendship with Angola and efforts to expand trade and cultural linkages. He met Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, describing India-Ethiopia ties as a partnership rooted in history and strengthened by developmental cooperation. On his meeting with Vietnam’s Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính, PM Modi reaffirmed India’s commitment to a stronger and future-oriented partnership with Vietnam.

PM Modi further interacted with World Trade Organization Director-General Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and World Health Organization Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Before the start of the first session of the Summit, he also met with other leaders, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The summit adopted the Bishkek Declaration and 27 other documents, covering regional security, artificial intelligence, climate change, and energy cooperation and Kyrgyzstan handed the rotating chairmanship to Pakistan at the summit's conclusion. 2026.