• Defense Secretary Giridhar Armane attended the meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Defence Ministers in Astana, Kazakhstan.
• A protocol was signed by the defence ministers of all SCO member states.
• A Joint Communique was issued after the meeting, in which the SCO Defence Ministers agreed, amongst other initiatives, to developing the idea of ‘One Earth, One Family, One Future’, which is rooted in the ancient Indian philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’.

ABOUT SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANIZATION (SCO):

• Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation.
• Its creation was announced on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai (China) by the Republic of Kazakhstan, the People’s Republic of China, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Tajikistan, and the Republic of Uzbekistan.
• It was preceded by the Shanghai Five mechanism.
• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Charter was signed during the St. Petersburg SCO Heads of State meeting in June 2002, and entered into force on 19 September 2003.
• The Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s official languages are Russian and Chinese.
• Members countries of SCO
  • China
  • India
  • Kazakhstan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Russia
  • Pakistan
  • Tajikistan
  • Uzbekistan
  • Iran