Issyk Kul (Kyrgyzstan), India and Kyrgyzstan reviewed the entire gamut of their bilateral ties during a meeting between Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Kyrgyz Foreign Minister Erlan Abdyldaev here on Saturday.
“During the meeting, the entire template of bilateral relations were discussed covering all areas of cooperation, including political and parliamentary exchanges, military and security, science and technology, economic, health and tourism,” the Indian External Affairs Ministry said in a statement following the meeting.
“The two Ministers expressed satisfaction at the progress of bilateral relations by taking forward the decisions taken during high level visits in 2015 and 2016 and discussions held on sidelines of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) Summit in Qingdao (in China this year),” it stated.
While Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited this Central Asian nation in July 2015, then Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev visited India in December 2016.
According to the statement, Sushma Swaraj also congratulated the Kyrgyz Republic for taking over as Chair of SCO in 2018-19 and assured full cooperation in the successful conduct of meetings and the SCO Summit in 2019 to be held in Kyrgyzstan.
The SCO is a Eurasian inter-governmental organisation, the creation of which was announced in 2001 in Shanghai by Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It was preceded by the Shanghai Five mechanism. India, along with Pakistan, was granted full membership of the bloc in June last year.
“The two Ministers also took the opportunity to discuss other issues of regional and international interest,” the ministry statement said.
Sushma Swaraj arrived here on Friday from Kazakhstan on the second leg of her three-nation tour of Central Asia that will also take her to Uzbekistan.
Soon after her arrival, she called on Kyrgyz President Sooronboi Jeenbekov.
“Discussed steps to expand and reinvigorate our bilateral relationship across all sectors,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted after the meeting.
