Ahead of the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in China, President Xi Jinping has hailed Beijing’s ties with Russia as the “most stable, mature, and strategically significant” among major world powers.
In a meeting with Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Xi called the China-Russia relationship a “stable source of world peace” and emphasized the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation.
Xi stressed that both countries should work closely to safeguard their security and development interests, unite the Global South, and promote multilateralism while advancing the international order towards greater fairness and justice. The statement comes as China prepares to host Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the upcoming SCO summit in Tianjin.
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China will host the 25th meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Tianjin on August 31 and September 1.
PM Modi To Hold Bilateral Meeting
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is expected to attend the upcoming SCO summit in China, may also hold several bilateral meetings during the event.
Prime Minister Modi has been a frequent participant in previous SCO summits, including those in Chengdu in 2018, Bishkek in 2019, Moscow (virtual) in 2020, Dushanbe (virtual) in 2021, Tashkent in 2022, and New Delhi (virtual) in 2023.
India has been actively involved in several ministerial and senior-level SCO processes.
Delegations led by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar have represented India in various SCO formats.
What Is SCO?
The SCO comprises 10 member states: India, Belarus, China, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, with a number of dialogue partners and observers. India has been a full member since 2017, having previously been an observer since 2005.
During its membership, India chaired the SCO Council of Heads of Government in 2020 and the SCO Council of Heads of State in 2022-2023.
(With ANI Inputs)