Lesson 73 of 76 7 min Premium

India, Central Asia and Eurasian Groupings: SCO and BRICS

Central Asia: India's extended neighbourhood

The five Central Asian Republics are Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. They became independent when the USSR broke up in 1991. India's links with the region go back a long way: Silk Road trade, the spread of Buddhism through Bactria and the Kushan empire, and the Mughals, since Babur came from the Fergana valley in present-day Uzbekistan. There are cultural ties too, through Sufi traditions, and Bollywood is popular in the region.

Map of the five Central Asian republics with Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, showing a route from India by sea to Chabahar and north to Ashgabat — With no direct land access, India reaches Central Asia through Iran. Arrows are schematic.

India's interests:

Energy and minerals: Kazakhstan is a major uranium supplier, with contracts with India since 2009. Uzbekistan also supplies uranium, and Turkmenistan has huge gas reserves.
Security: radicalisation, terrorism, drug trafficking from Afghanistan and regional stability.
Connectivity and trade: trade remains small because there is no direct land access (Pakistan blocks transit, and China and Afghanistan are difficult routes).
Strategic balance: China's growing role through the BRI and Russia's traditional influence.

Policy frameworks

Connect Central Asia Policy (2012): political, economic, security and cultural engagement.
PM Modi's 2015 visit to all five Central Asian Republics.
India–Central Asia Dialogue at foreign minister level (from 2019).
First India–Central Asia Summit, held virtually in January 2022. It agreed to hold summits every two years, set up a Joint Working Group on Chabahar, and created a secretariat in New Delhi.
A US$1 billion line of credit for development projects, such as the India–Uzbekistan projects, and high-impact community development projects.
Defence: India helped renovate the Ayni airbase in Tajikistan in the 2000s. Exercises include KAZIND with Kazakhstan, Khanjar with Kyrgyzstan and Dustlik with Uzbekistan.

Connectivity routes:

Chabahar–INSTC: from Mumbai by sea to Chabahar or Bandar Abbas, then by road and rail through Iran to Central Asia and Russia.
Ashgabat Agreement (2011): a multimodal transit corridor connecting Central Asia and the Persian Gulf. India joined in 2018.
TAPI pipeline (Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India): proposed for decades but stalled by security problems in Afghanistan and the state of India–Pakistan relations.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

Origins: the "Shanghai Five" (1996) of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, formed for border confidence-building. It became the SCO in 2001, when Uzbekistan joined.

India and Pakistan became full members in 2017 (the Astana summit).
Iran joined in 2023, with India chairing.
Belarus joined in 2024.

Structure: the Council of Heads of State (the supreme body); a secretariat in Beijing; and the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent. The official languages are Russian and Chinese.

India's interests in the SCO:

Counter-terrorism cooperation through RATS.
Engagement with Central Asia and Russia.
A platform for raising terrorism with Pakistan and China present.
Energy and connectivity discussions.

India chaired the SCO in 2023 under the theme "Towards a SECURE SCO" (Security; Economic development; Connectivity; Unity; Respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; Environmental protection). India held the summit virtually.

India's positions within the SCO:

India has declined to endorse the BRI in SCO declarations.
India pushed for strong language against terrorism. In 2025 India refused to sign an SCO defence ministers' statement that omitted the Pahalgam attack. The Tianjin summit declaration (2025) later condemned the Pahalgam attack.
India seeks to keep the SCO from becoming an anti-Western bloc.

BRICS

Origins: the term "BRIC" was coined by Jim O'Neill of Goldman Sachs in 2001. The first summit was held in Yekaterinburg (2009). South Africa joined in 2010, making BRICS.

Expansion: the 2023 Johannesburg summit invited new members. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the UAE joined in 2024; Saudi Arabia has not formally confirmed membership; Indonesia joined in 2025. A category of "partner countries" was also created.

Institutions:

New Development Bank (NDB): agreed at Fortaleza in 2014, headquartered in Shanghai; K.V. Kamath was its first president.
Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA): US$100 billion for balance of payments support.

India's approach to BRICS:

Uses BRICS to push for reform of global governance (IMF quotas, the UN Security Council, the WTO) and to amplify the voice of the Global South.
Supports trade in local currencies but has said it does not seek de-dollarisation or a common BRICS currency.
Cautious about BRICS expansion turning it into a China-led anti-West bloc.

India hosted BRICS summits in 2012, 2016 and 2021 and chairs BRICS in 2026.

Other Eurasian and regional forums

CICA (Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia): India is a member.
RIC (Russia–India–China) trilateral: largely dormant since 2020.
Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU): an India–EAEU FTA has been under discussion.

Challenges

No direct land access, and Chabahar is constrained by sanctions.
Low trade volumes compared with China's.
China's dominance as a lender, trader and pipeline builder.
Russia's security role (the CSTO).
Instability in Afghanistan.
Within the SCO and BRICS, India–China tensions and the presence of Pakistan limit consensus.

Way forward

Make Chabahar and the INSTC fully operational.
Use digital connectivity: IT, UPI, e-education and telemedicine. e-VidyaBharti and e-AarogyaBharti (e-VBAB) extend to the region.
Build pharmaceutical and higher education links. Many Central Asian students study medicine in India, while Indian students go to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan for medical degrees.
Expand cooperation on rare earths and critical minerals.
Take part in the region's own initiatives, such as the Trans-Caspian corridor.

Practice: Mains question

*"Despite historical and cultural ties, India's engagement with Central Asia has remained below potential." Examine the reasons and suggest measures. (250 words)*

Analysis: why multilateral Eurasian forums matter to India

India is a member of both "Western-leaning" groups (the Quad, the I2U2, partnerships with the G7) and "non-Western" groups (the SCO and BRICS). This reflects multi-alignment: India keeps channels open with all major powers and uses each platform for specific interests. In the SCO it gets counter-terrorism cooperation, contact with Central Asia, and a forum where it can engage China and Pakistan on security. BRICS gives it a voice on global financial reform and development finance through the NDB, which has funded Indian projects in water, transport and renewable energy.

Critics' concerns:

These forums risk being dominated by China.
Pakistan uses the SCO to raise Kashmir.
BRICS's anti-Western rhetoric could complicate India's ties with the US. For example, in 2025 the US threatened extra tariffs on countries that align with BRICS policies.

India manages these concerns by insisting on consensus, opposing references to the BRI, and steering the agenda towards development issues.

Central Asia: resource and security details

Kazakhstan is the world's largest uranium producer, and its supplies support India's nuclear power programme.
Turkmenistan has some of the world's largest natural gas reserves (the Galkynysh field), but exports go mainly to China.
Uzbekistan is the region's most populous country and has opened up economically since 2016. India–Uzbekistan cooperation includes pharmaceuticals and higher education (Indian universities have campuses in Tashkent).
Tajikistan borders Afghanistan and is close to PoK through the narrow Wakhan Corridor.
Kyrgyzstan hosts many Indian medical students.

The Fergana Valley (divided between Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan) has been a site of ethnic tensions and radicalisation. Water disputes along the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, and the shrinking Aral Sea, are regional environmental issues.

Common prelims traps

Turkmenistan is not a member of the SCO. It follows a policy of permanent neutrality, recognised by the UN in 1995.
The SCO's official languages are Russian and Chinese.
The NDB has admitted new members beyond the BRICS founders, such as Bangladesh, the UAE, Egypt and Algeria.
BRICS decisions are by consensus; there is no permanent secretariat.

⚡ Quick revision

Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; Babur from Fergana
Connect Central Asia 2012; Modi visit to all five 2015; first India–Central Asia Summit Jan 2022 (virtual)
Ashgabat Agreement 2011 (India joined 2018); TAPI pipeline; Kazakh uranium
SCO: Shanghai Five 1996 → SCO 2001; India & Pakistan 2017; Iran 2023; Belarus 2024; secretariat Beijing; RATS Tashkent; India chair 2023 "SECURE"
BRIC term 2001 (O'Neill); first summit 2009; SA 2010; expansion 2024 (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE); Indonesia 2025
NDB (Fortaleza 2014, Shanghai; K.V. Kamath); CRA US$100 bn; India chairs BRICS 2026

Religion and philosophy founded by Gautama Buddha in the 6th–5th century BCE, centred on the Four Noble Truths. Full coverage: Buddhism: Life of the Buddha, Teachings, Councils and Spread.Central Asian dynasty that ruled north-west India in the 1st–3rd centuries CE; Kanishka was its best-known ruler. Full coverage: Post-Mauryan India: Shungas, Satavahanas, Indo-Greeks, Shakas and Kushanas.The Mughals were a dynasty of Central Asian origin, founded in India by Babur after the First Battle of Panipat in 1526, that ruled most of the subcontinent at its height and lasted, in name, until 1857.A west-flowing peninsular river, about 724 km long, that rises near Multai in the Betul district of Madhya Pradesh, flows through a rift trough south of the Satpura range across Maharashtra and Gujarat, and enters the Arabian Sea near Surat through an estuary.The quality of being consistently guided by sound moral principles, so that one's values, words and actions match, in private and in public, even when no one is watching and when it is costly to do so.A systematic record of all economic transactions between residents of a country and the rest of the world over a period, divided into the current account (trade in goods and services, income and transfers) and the capital or financial account (investment and borrowing flows), with changes in foreign exchange reserves balancing the two.The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organisation, created at Bretton Woods in 1944, that monitors the global monetary system, lends to member countries facing balance-of-payments problems and provides policy advice and technical assistance; it is headquartered in Washington, D.C.The UN Security Council (UNSC) is the principal organ of the United Nations responsible for international peace and security; it has 15 members, five permanent members with veto power (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States) and ten non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.The international organisation, set up on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, that administers global trade rules, hosts trade negotiations and settles trade disputes among its members; India is a founding member.A real-time, mobile-first payment system built and run by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) that lets anyone move money between bank accounts instantly using a virtual address, a phone number or a QR code.The Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, is a diplomatic partnership of Australia, India, Japan and the United States that works for a "free, open and inclusive" Indo-Pacific through cooperation on maritime security, health, critical technologies, infrastructure, climate and disaster response.Strategic autonomy is the principle that a country should keep the freedom to make its own foreign and security policy choices according to its national interest, without being bound to any single power or bloc; in India it is seen as the successor to non-alignment and is often practised today as "multi-alignment" with many partners.Energy from sources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale, such as sunlight, wind, flowing water, biomass, geothermal heat and the tides, as opposed to finite fossil fuels.Energy released from the nuclei of atoms, mainly through fission of uranium or plutonium in reactors, which India uses to generate low-carbon electricity under a three-stage programme aimed at using its large thorium reserves.

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