Prime Minister Narendra Modi , Chinese President Xi Jinping , Russian President Vladimir Putin and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif were captured in the same frame as heads of state of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) gathered in Bishkek on Tuesday for the 26th Summit’s official group photograph.
A roundtable discussion was also held at the same venue on the sidelines of the 26th SCO Summit, bringing together leaders of the member countries, news agency ANI reported. The leaders assembled at Bishkek’s Yrys Ordo Congress Hall for the family photography, a cornerstone tradition of the annual regional gathering. Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Japarov, who is hosting the summit and serving as its chairman, led the discussion. Along with Modi, Xi, Putin and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon were also present at the SCO gathering. The talks took place over a week before Putin is set to travel to India to attend the annual BRICS summit. PM Modi called on President Vladimir Putin to end Russia’s war in Ukraine during the meeting.
India supports all and every effort for peace and will continue to do so, Modi said, calling Putin “my friend” in televised comments at the start of their talks in the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek. There’s a need to move from “endless war to end of war” he said, switching from Hindi into English. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, focusing on key aspects of bilateral ties, including cooperation in trade, investment, energy, and defence. Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Monday, marking the first meeting between the two leaders in two years.
Putin responded that “we’re moving in this direction,” without elaborating. Russia and India continue to strengthen their strategic partnership, facilitated by Modi’s “very kind, personal, friendly relations, for which I thank you,” he said.
