Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here on Tuesday took the chairmanship of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at the 14th Summit meeting of the regional grouping.

The two-day meeting gathered together the Heads of State or Government of the member countries of SAARC -- Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to discuss efforts to combat terrorism, alleviate poverty and to promote intra- regional trade.

At the opening ceremony of the meeting, Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed a joint declaration with the Heads of State or Government of the seven SAARC member countries, formalizing Afghanistan's entry into the regional grouping.

SAARC's five Observers -- China, Japan, Republic of Korea, the United States of America and the European Union also sent their representatives to the meeting.

India hosted the 2nd SAARC Summit in Bangalore in 1986 and the 8th SAARC Summit in New Delhi in 1995.

Source: Xinhua