Modi's SCO Address: Connectivity and Combating Terrorism in Central Asia

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address at the 26th summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, comes at a time when Central Asia is diversifying its partnerships in all directions. A region long shaped by its Soviet past and one that still maintains economic links with Russia, its five countries are now also looking to China for trade, investment and infrastructure, and to Iran and the Gulf for access to the south, though the ongoing conflict complicates the latter. The region’s growing strategic importance and shared security concerns, including terrorism, have led India and all Central Asian countries except Turkmenistan, which maintains permanent neutrality, to establish strategic partnerships. This evolving context makes the PM’s visit even more significant. The PM’s speech focused mainly on two issues: Connectivity and terrorism. The absence of direct land access has constrained trade and wider economic and cultural engagement. There is no overland access through Pakistan, and Afghanistan’s airspace remains beset by security risks. But connectivity goes far beyond building roads and railways. At its core, it is about shaping the economic and strategic geography of Eurasia. India, therefore, must find ways to expand economic engagement while overcoming the limitations imposed by geography. A starting point could be to focus on products and services that do not depend on roads — services, digital systems and technological investments. On terrorism, the prime minister is right to call on the international community to collectively dismantle the ecosystem of terror, including its financing and recruitment networks. The reality New Delhi must recognise, however, is that the international political will against terrorism has weakened. Over the past year, Pakistan has largely overcome its diplomatic isolation, and it is set to assume the organisation’s rotational chairmanship. In June last year, SCO defence ministers could not agree on the references to terrorism in their joint statement. China possesses greater financial resources than any other member and is heavily investing in Central Asian infrastructure as part of the Belt and Road Initiative. Delhi should therefore place greater weight on its individual partnerships with member states. The agreement with Uzbekistan on the long-term supply of uranium is a step in that direction. Central Asian countries are emerging as multi-vector actors. Rather than choosing between competing powers, they are seeking multiple options to improve access to market. India should become one of those options — and use a multilateral forum like the SCO to advance bilateral relationships. That is a strategy New Delhi should carry forward to BRICS, as it prepares to host its 18th summit.