By IANS
New Delhi : Petroleum Minister Murli Deora will represent India at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), a six-nation grouping comprising Russia, China and central Asian republics, which will be held in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek Thursday.
Trade, economic cooperation and counter-terrorism are the key focus areas at the SCO summit, external affairs ministry spokesperson Navtej Sarna told reporters here Monday.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee was earlier expected to go for the SCO summit, but had to opt out in view of the debate in parliament over the India-US civil nuclear deal, scheduled for Tuesday and Thursday.
The SCO, a regional grouping in which China and Russia wield enormous clout, was formed in 2001 to promote economic cooperation and strengthen coordination on strategic issues in Central Asia.
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan are other members of the SCO.
Deora also represented India at the SCO summit last year held in Shanghai.
India, Iran, Pakistan and Mongolia were invited as observers to the SCO summit for the first time in Astana in July 2005.