India is hosting three day Central Asia Dialogue from today, Afghanistan central focus

External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Saturday will host the third edition of the India-Central Asia Dialogue in New Delhi. The three-day event will continue till Monday and it will be focused on holding talks to strengthen the relations between member states in terms of trade, connectivity, and development cooperation. Arindam Bagchi also said that the foreign ministers of the Central Asian countries are expected to pay a joint courtesy call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to exchange views on regional and international issues of global interest.

Key Points:

2. "The holding of annual meetings of the India-Central Asia Dialogue is symbolic of the interest on the part of all member countries for greater engagement between them in a spirit of friendship, trust, and mutual understanding," Bagchi further said.

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3. The major topic of the three-day dialogue will be discussion on the current situation in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has faced multiple crises after the forceful takeover by the Taliban and Central Asian countries like Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan share borders with Afghanistan.

4. "The holding of the India-Central Asia Dialogue is symbolic of the interest on part of all members countries for greater engagements between them in a spirit of friendship, trust, and mutual understanding," MEA spokesperson added.

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5. The Narendra Modi-led government also reached out to these five countries to extend an invitation to their top leaders to be the chief guests for the upcoming 2022 Republic Day celebrations. Jaishankar has also visited Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan this year and also met the foreign minister of Turkmenistan in October.