- Friday, February 28, 2025
Xi, along with other participating leaders, will chart the course for the future growth of the organisation and deliver important remarks, said sources in China’s foreign ministry.
By: Shubham Ghosh
CHINESE president Xi Jinping and Pakistani prime minister Shehhbaz Sharif will attend the upcoming virtual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) hosted by India on July 4.
While the announcement confirming Xi’s participation was made by China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying on Friday (30), the Pakistani foreign ministry said the same about Sharif’s attendance.
Both the leaders will participate in the summit at the invitation of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, their respective foreign ministries added.
This is the first official confirmation of Xi’s participation in the SCO summit hosted by India, which is currently holding the grouping’s rotational presidency. The Pakistani foreign ministry, on the other hand, said in a statement that Sharif’s participation in the summit illustrates the high importance that Pakistan attaches to the SCO, which is an important forum for regional security and prosperity, and enhanced engagement with the region.
In Beijing, Mao Ning, another spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, mentioned in a media briefing that Xi, along with other participating leaders, will deliver “important remarks” and chart the course for the future growth of the organisation.
Mao expressed confidence that with the concerted efforts of all member states, the SCO will achieve greater progress, development and prosperity in the region.
She emphasised the importance of the SCO in strengthening good neighbourly relations, political mutual trust and deepening cooperation among member states.
China considers the SCO a priority in its foreign affairs as a founding member, she said and expressed China’s readiness to work with other member states on initiatives such as the Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative and Global Civilization Initiative to build “an even closer SCO community” with a shared future and create a brighter future for the Eurasian continent. These initiatives are part of China’s strategic efforts to enhance its influence on the global stage.
India’s ministry of external affairs announced in May that India will host the annual summit of the SCO in the virtual format on July 4. However, it did not cite reasons for holding the summit in the virtual mode. Pakistani foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari attended in person a key multilateral meeting of the SCO in India’s Goa, becoming the country’s first foreign minister to visit India since 2011 after his predecessor Hina Rabbani Khar.
The SCO, founded in 2001, is a significant economic and security bloc and one of the largest transregional international organizations. India and Pakistan joined as permanent members in 2017, expanding its membership.
In preparation for the summit, India inaugurated the New Delhi Hall at the SCO Secretariat in Beijing earlier this week. The hall represents India’s unique cultural identity and showcases various aspects of Indian culture. India’s external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar highlighted the hall’s design, which incorporates patterns and motifs representing India’s rich architectural craftsmanship.
The virtual SCO summit will mark another important gathering of top leaders, following last year’s in-person summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. In September, India will host the G20 summit and plans to invite Xi and Russian president Vladimir Putin, among other leaders.
(With agency inputs)
