NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj arrived in Iran on Saturday from the coastal resort of Sochi, Russia, after attending the first conference as a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
She will jointly inaugurate the first phase of the Chabahar port project on Sunday with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani.
In her speech at the SCO on Friday, she asked for a concerted regional and global efforts to contain terrorism and better intelligence sharing mechanism among its eight members.
She also urged the security grouping to delink religion from terror. Without naming fellow members Pakistan and China, she berated the two countries for justifying terrorism on the grounds of region and ethnicity, and asserted that India was keen to strengthen cooperation within the SCO to work together for “comprehensive, cooperative, and sustainable security.
We want connectivity to pave the way for cooperation and trust between our societies. For this, respect for sovereignty is essential. Inclusivity, transparency, and sustainability are imperative.”
“Greater involvement of the Central Asian countries in the economic development of Afghanistan especially through enhanced trade, investment and connectivity would serve the purpose of consolidating peace and security in our region,” she added.