External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met with counterparts from several countries on the sidelines of the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

The meetings were aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation and reviewing regional developments.

He held a significant engagement with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is also a Politburo member. Jaishankar noted on X that it was good to meet Wang Yi in Bishkek. This meeting followed their extensive discussions in Manila in July, where they addressed bilateral relations, border stability and wider regional and global issues.

The External Affairs Minister also interacted briefly with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. He described these as quick catch-ups on the sidelines of the summit.

This came after his wide-ranging conversation with Lavrov in Moscow last week, which covered bilateral cooperation, regional hotspots, global challenges and multilateral issues. His meeting with Araghchi in May in New Delhi had focused on West Asia and bilateral matters of mutual interest.

Jaishankar shared a photograph of his meeting with Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov in Bishkek, where the two leaders exchanged a warm hug. He expressed his pleasure at meeting Saidov again.

This encounter followed Saidov’s three-day visit to New Delhi last month, during which both ministers undertook a detailed review of their strategic partnership. Their discussions had focused on energy, infrastructure, trade, defence, education and culture, alongside key regional challenges and multilateral cooperation.

He also held talks with Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin. Jaishankar described this as a good discussion on the sidelines of the summit. The meeting added to India’s ongoing diplomatic engagements with Central Asian nations, reinforcing cooperation in security, connectivity and cultural exchanges.

The Bishkek summit itself marked the 26th gathering of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a forum that has increasingly become central to discussions on regional stability, counterterrorism, energy security and multilateral collaboration. India’s active participation underlined its commitment to deepening ties with member states and addressing pressing challenges in Eurasia and beyond.

ANI