Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin recently met for the fifth time this year at a summit in Kazakhstan. Putin described the relationship between China and Russia as a “golden era” built on equality and mutual respect. Xi warned about the challenges posed by the “cold war mindset” and emphasized the importance of maintaining security and promoting common development goals.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), with more than 40% of the world’s population and 20% of global GDP, aims to address security challenges faced by its members. The SCO has expanded to include countries like India and Pakistan, with recent additions of Iran and Belarus. Some view the SCO as anti-Western, but experts argue it serves different functions from Western organizations like NATO.
Despite external pressure, the SCO is expected to continue expanding and evolving to address regional challenges and promote cooperation among member states.