Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will lead a high-level Indian delegation at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ Meeting in China’s Qingdao on June 25 and 26, the Ministry of Defence said Tuesday. According to the ministry, Singh will also hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from a few other participating countries, including China, making it his second engagement with the Chinese Defence Minister Admiral Dong Jun since October 2024, when both sides agreed to disengage in eastern Ladakh after being engaged in a military standoff for more than four years. Since 2020, Singh has so far held three bilateral meetings with Chinese defence ministers, one in September 2020 in Moscow and in April 2023 at New Delhi—both on the sidelines of the SCO Defence Ministers’ Meeting—and the third in November 2024 at Vientiane, Laos, on the sidelines of the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus. Sources said both sides are likely to discuss the progress in disengagement by Indian and Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the remaining border disputes. Issues related to regional security are also likely to be part of the discussions. The sources added that he would also likely have a bilateral meeting with the Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov, where both sides are likely to discuss defence cooperation between the two countries. Since 2022, when the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began, Singh has had meetings with the Russian defence minister twice, including at the SCO Defence Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi in April 2023. He co-chaired the 21st India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military Technical Cooperation alongside Belusov in December 2024. Singh was scheduled to travel to Moscow last month to represent India at the Russian Victory Day parade, but skipped it because of the impending Operation Sindoor launched by India in May against terror targets in Pakistan. Much of India’s military platforms and equipment are of Russian origin and require regular spare supplies and maintenance from Russia. In a statement, the defence ministry said the ministers at the SCO meet are expected to discuss issues, such as regional and international peace and security, counter-terrorism efforts and cooperation among member states. It said Singh is expected to highlight “India’s continued commitment to the principles and mandate of the SCO, outline India’s vision towards achieving greater international peace & security, call for joint and consistent efforts to eliminate terrorism and extremism in the region, and stress on the need for greater trade, economic cooperation and connectivity within SCO”. The defence ministry said India attaches special importance to SCO in promoting multilateralism, political, security, economic and people-to-people interactions in the region. “SCO pursues its policy based on the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity of nations, non-interference in internal affairs, mutual respect, understanding and equality of all member states,” it said. Established in 2001, India became a full member of the inter-governmental organisation in 2017 and assumed the rotating chairmanship in 2023. Besides India, the SCO membership includes Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Belarus. China has assumed the Chair of the SCO for 2025 under the theme ‘Upholding the Shanghai Spirit: SCO on the Move’.
