India In Pakistan’s Islamabad For SCO Meet Starting Today: What Is The Agenda And What To Expect? All You Need To Know

Last Updated:September 28, 2026, 12:41 IST

Pakistan is hosting the forum from September 28-30. Joint Secretary Alok Dimri is expected to attend

This marks the first major initial engagement under Pakistan’s 2026–27 chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of State.

India is participating in the first meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of National Coordinators (CNC) in Islamabad, Pakistan, running from September 28 to 30.

Joint Secretary Alok Dimri is expected to attend the event representing the Indian delegation.

KEY DETAILS OF THE MEETING

This marks the first major initial engagement under Pakistan’s 2026–27 chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of State (CHS), which it took over from Kyrgyzstan on September 1, 2026. The primary goal is to finalise and approve the calendar of events and upcoming activities for the year.

Pakistan is hosting the forum under the guiding theme: ‘Turning Vision into Action: Connectivity, Innovation and Shared Prosperity’.

Despite enduring bilateral tensions and a decade without substantive bilateral engagements, both India and Pakistan continue to engage actively within multilateral SCO mechanisms.

WHAT CAN INDIA EXPECT?

India can expect a heavily structured, multilateral environment focused on setting the SCO’s operational agenda, with both nations intentionally keeping their complex bilateral disputes separate from the forum’s broader objectives.

As the primary objective of this introductory meeting, India will collaborate with member states to map out and approve the full slate of upcoming ministerial dialogues, working group sessions, and military exercises planned under Pakistan’s rotating presidency.

India will likely use the forum to reiterate its firm stance against cross-border terrorism. While Pakistan currently chairs the SCO’s Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (SCO-RATS), India will look to ensure that collective commitments to target UN-proscribed terror entities remain a core component of the SCO’s security declarations.

The outcomes of this coordinators’ meeting will pave the way for high-level summits, culminating in the SCO Council of Heads of State Summit which Pakistan is scheduled to host in August 2027. Pakistan’s Foreign Office has confirmed that official invitations for the final summit will be dispatched to all member-state leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to reports.

WHAT IS SCO?

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a permanent Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance founded on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China, by the leaders of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Established primarily to ensure regional stability, the organisation focuses heavily on strengthening mutual trust, promoting trade and economic partnerships, and combating the “three evils” of terrorism, separatism, and extremism, largely through its specialized Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS).

Over the years, the bloc has expanded into the world’s largest regional organization by geographic scope and population, covering roughly 60% of Eurasia and more than 40% of the global population. Today, the SCO comprises 10 permanent member states, including the original founders alongside India, Pakistan, Iran, and its newest member, Belarus.

HAS INDIA ATTENDED SUCH SCO MEETS IN PAKISTAN IN THE PAST?

While the ongoing session is the first coordinators’ meeting under Pakistan’s 2026–27 presidency, India has routinely sent delegations to Pakistan for various SCO events since both nations became full members in 2017.

Notable prior instances of India attending SCO events in Pakistan include:

October 2024: India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, traveled to Islamabad to attend the high-level SCO Council of Heads of Government summit. This marked the first visit by an Indian Foreign Minister to Pakistan in nearly nine years.

July 2026: An Indian delegation traveled to Islamabad to participate in the 12th SCO meeting of the heads of border services, working directly with regional counterparts on border security frameworks.

Over the years, Indian military and bureaucratic officials have consistently traveled to Pakistan for collective SCO-RATS (Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure) military drills and expert-level working groups.

Both countries strictly adhere to the SCO Charter, which bars members from bringing bilateral disputes into the forum. This mechanism allows Indian officials to participate regularly in meetings hosted by Pakistan without restarting direct bilateral talks.

With agency inputs

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What is India’s role in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting in Islamabad?

Joint Secretary Alok Dimri is representing the Indian delegation at the first meeting of the SCO Council of National Coordinators in Islamabad, running from September 28 to 30, 2026. India is collaborating with member states to finalise the calendar of events and upcoming activities under Pakistan’s rotating presidency while maintaining a firm stance against cross-border terrorism.

When did Pakistan assume the chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of State?

Pakistan officially took over the 2026-27 chairmanship of the SCO Council of Heads of State from Kyrgyzstan on September 1, 2026.

How many permanent member states currently comprise the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation?

The SCO comprises 10 permanent member states, including original founders alongside India, Pakistan, Iran, and its newest member, Belarus.

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