SCO: Russia waiting for Jaishankar’s confirmation

NEW DELHI: Russia is awaiting official confirmation of India’s participation in a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) foreign ministers on September 10. If he does travel, foreign minister S Jaishankar will for the first time come face to face with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi since the military standoff with China was reported in early May.
As reported by TOI on August 2, Russia had proposed that both BRICS and SCO foreign ministers meet physically in Moscow on September 10. However, diplomatic sources said the BRICS meeting will now be held virtually on Friday.
As per a tentative schedule, Jaishankar is expected to arrive in Moscow late evening on September 9. India and Russia are also likely to use the opportunity to hold a meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) which guides bilateral economic cooperation. The IRIGC-TEC is chaired by the Indian foreign minister and the Russian deputy PM. Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will also be present at the meeting.