India says lack of assured transit within Shanghai bloc impedes trade ties
This story was originally published at 19:33 IST on 15 July 2025
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NEW DELHI – External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Tuesday flagged the "lack of assured transit" within the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as a major impediment to deepening trade and investment among its member countries. Jaishankar raised the concern at a meeting of the bloc's Council of Foreign Ministers in Tianjin, China. He expressed the concern at a time when Beijing has imposed restrictions on the export of rare earth minerals.
The external affairs minister said the absence of assured transit within the organisation's member countries undermines the "seriousness of advocating cooperation in economic areas". He said, "Deepening collaboration within the SCO naturally requires more trade, investment, and exchanges. For that to move to the next level, it is imperative that we address some current issues. One of them is the lack of assured transit within the SCO space."
He also pushed for the promotion of the International North-South Transport Corridor and expressed confidence that it would gather momentum. The International North-South Transport Corridor is a multi-modal transportation project aimed at reducing shipping time and costs between India, Russia, Iran, and Europe. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, the project has the potential to enhance India's connectivity with Central Asia and the Eurasian region, taking into account the geostrategic and economic importance of all the countries involved.
Jaishankar said the world is moving towards greater multi-polarity with the emergence of effective groups like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. He stressed the need to take everybody on board to contribute to the shaping of world affairs in a changing scenario.
Referring to the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on Apr. 22, Jaishankar called upon the organisation to take an uncompromising position on the attack. He said the three evils the grouping was founded to combat were terrorism, separatism, and extremism.
"Recently, we in India witnessed a graphic example in the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. It was deliberately conducted to undermine the tourism economy of Jammu and Kashmir, while sowing a religious divide. It is imperative that the SCO, to remain true to its founding objectives, take an uncompromising position on this challenge," he said. End
Reported by Kuldeep Singh
Edited by Rajeev Pai
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