New Delhi/Panaji, May 4 :External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday held a productive interaction with the SCO Secretary General Zhang Ming on the sidelines of the SCO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Goa.

In a tweet, EAM said that India’s presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is driven by a commitment to SECURE SCO, with key focus on startups, traditional medicine, youth empowerment, Buddhist heritage and science and technology.

Later on Thursday, EAM Jaishankar will hold bilateral interactions with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who has already arrived in Goa, and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, and his Uzbek counterpart Baxtiyor Saidov.

“Started my meetings at SCO CFM with a productive interaction with Secretary General Zhang Ming. Appreciate his support for India’s SCO Presidency.

“Indian presidency is driven by a commitment to SECURE SCO. Its key focus areas are startups, traditional medicine, youth empowerment, Buddhist heritage and science & technology.

“Looking forward to a successful CFM in Goa.”

The concept of ‘SECURE’ was floated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the SCO summit in Qingdao, China in 2018, with every alphabet reflecting India’s commitment towards the multi-dimensional welfare of the region.

S – Security of citizens; E – Economic development for all; C – Connecting the region; U – Uniting the people; R – Respect for Sovereignty and Integrity; E – Environmental protection).

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an intergovernmental organization established in 2001. The SCO membership includes Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan besides India.

The theme of India’s Chairmanship of SCO in 2023 is ‘SECURE-SCO’.