Indian military contingent takes part in SCO 'Peaceful Mission' in Russia

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Defence announced that an Indian military contingent took part in the 6th edition of the SCO 'Peaceful Mission' 2021, which is being held at Orenburg in Russia, in an attempt to build closer ties among SCO member states. According to a statement by the Defence Ministry, the joint counter-terrorism exercise 'Peaceful Mission' is a Multilateral Exercise that takes place twice a year as part of military diplomacy between members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The Indian military contingent, which consists of a 200-strong all-arms combined force, including 38 members of the Indian Air Force, is taking part in the exercise Peaceful Mission-2021, said the release. It further stated that the Indian contingent participated in the exercise with two IL-76 aircraft and the troops also received training under the supervision of South Western Command before their departure.

Apart from fostering close relations between SCO member states, the 6th edition of exercise Peaceful Mission, conducted from September 13 to 25, also intends to strengthen military leaders' ability to command multi-national military contingents. The exercise will allow the Armed Forces of the SCO nations to share best practices and also chance to practise counter-terrorism operations in an urban setting in a multinational and collaborative environment. Exercise Peaceful Mission 2021 is being termed as a watershed moment in military-to-military engagements and worldwide counter-terrorism cooperation. Professional engagement, mutual understanding of exercises and procedures, the establishment of collaborative command & control structures, and the eradication of terrorist threats are all part of the exercise's scope, stated the defence ministry release. 

PM Modi to attend SCO meet virtually

It should be noted here that Pakistan, China, and India have previously participated in international military exercises. However, India did not send troops to the SCO military drill last year, which included both China and Pakistan. In 2017, India and Pakistan were admitted as full members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. While, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan were among the group's original members. On Thursday, September 16, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will join the SCO conference virtually, which is being held in Tajikistan's Dushanbe. The high-level summit will also include the heads of state of seven additional neighbouring countries. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the SCO and India will be attending for the fourth time as a full member of the organisation.

(With ANI inputs)

Image: ANI