The plenary session proceedings began with an opening speech by Pakistan PM Shehbaz who chaired the summit, followed by speeches by the dignitaries. The session will conclude with a document-signing ceremony.
Responding to a query about the visit of Jaishankar and India-Pakistan ties, the foreign minister's spokesperson said Pakistan had received an "official intimation with regards to this visit" and it was ready to welcome all members.
In his discussion with Uzbek Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov, Jaishankar expressed appreciation for the consistent advancement in India-Uzbekistan relations and explored avenues to elevate them further.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held a bilateral talk with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Goa on the sidelines of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting.
The two-day SCO Defence Ministers meeting started on April 27 and was represented by delegates from all member-states -- hosts India, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
It would be the highest-level visit to India by any Pakistani leader in recent years and a possible opportunity to break the ice between the two nations.
Launched in Shanghai in June 2001, the SCO has eight full members, including its six founding members, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India and Pakistan joined as full members in 2017.
It is for the first time the Indian prime minister attended the SCO summit after India along with Pakistan became full-fledged members of the grouping, jointly dominated by China and Russia, which has been increasingly seen as a counter to NATO.
Modi arrived here in the afternoon on a two-day visit to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
Describing his latest China visit as a new beginning for India, PM Modi said he was excited to lead the Indian delegation for their first-ever meeting of the Council as a full member.
PM Narendra Modi leaves for SCO Summit in China
Although both have met over a dozen times as leaders of their countries, the Saturday meeting in Qingdao comes just a little over two months after the "ice-breaking" informal summit in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.
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