Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping recently attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, created to counter Western alliances and promote a “multipolar world.” Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev praised the SCO as an influential international structure representing 40% of the global population and 30% of GDP.
Xi emphasized the importance of handling internal differences peacefully, while Putin highlighted the commitment to a just, multipolar world order. Notably, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent Foreign Minister S Jaishankar to the summit, sparking media speculation.
The SCO, established in 2001 by China, Russia, and Central Asian nations, focuses on regional security and economic cooperation. With recent additions of India, Pakistan, and Iran into the organization and the attendance of countries like Turkey and Saudi Arabia, the summit covered topics like Afghanistan post-Taliban rule and economic projects linking China to Europe through Central Asia.
Overall, the SCO summit highlighted the collective efforts of member states to promote regional stability and economic growth in a changing geopolitical landscape.