NEWS

Prime Minister of India hosted the first meeting of the India-Central Asia Summit virtually

DETAILS

• Who participated – Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyz republic
• India has been planning to hold the summit since Modi’s visit to these central Asian countries in 2015
• Overcoming the lack of land connectivity between India and Central Asia’s landlocked countries was one of the “main issues of discussion”
• The leaders also spoke at length about concerns over Afghanistan, sharing the “same concerns and same objectives” in broader terms
• Agreed to setting up a Joint Working Group (JWG) of senior officials
• Concerns – immediate humanitarian assistance, ensuring the formation of a truly representative and inclusive government, combating terrorism and drug trafficking, and preserving the rights of women, children and minorities.
• Summit reflects the growing engagement of India with the central Asian countries

India – Central Asia Dialogue

• Held annually among the ministers
• First dialogue was held in 2019
• India and Central Asian countries signed High Impact Community Development Projects in 2020.
• The third dialogue was held in December 2021. During the dialogue, the countries pledged to increase their cooperation based on 4Cs, which is, commerce, connectivity, capacity building and contact.

India – Central Asia Business Council

• It promotes business linkages, mutual investments and understanding of business regulations. The last and the second council meet was held in 2020. The next and the third council meet is to be hosted by Uzbekistan in 2022.
• The trade between India and Central Asia is around 2 billion USD. On the other hand, the trade between China and central asia is around 100 billion USD.