Xi to chair SCO summit in Tianjin

President Xi Jinping will get together with leaders of more than 20 countries and 10 international organizations at the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit to work out a development blueprint for the international organization, consolidate consensus on cooperation and promote a much closer SCO community with a shared future, a senior diplomat said.

Speaking at a news briefing in Beijing on Friday, Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Bin said the summit, which will take place in Tianjin from Aug 31 to Sept 1, will be the largest-ever gathering since the organization was founded 24 years ago.

Xi will chair the 25th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO and the "SCO Plus" Meeting and deliver keynote speeches, he said, adding that Xi will also host a welcome banquet and bilateral events for participating leaders.

The diplomat said that during the summit, Xi will outline China's new thoughts and proposals on how the regional organization continues to promote the Shanghai Spirit, featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development, to respond to the call of the times.

Xi will announce new measures and actions to support the high-quality development and all-around cooperation of the SCO, and propose new approaches and pathways for building the organization, maintaining the post-World War II international order and improving the global governance system, Liu said.

Xi, along with other leaders of SCO member states, will jointly sign and issue the Tianjin Declaration, approve the SCO's development strategy for the next decade and issue a statement on the 80th anniversary of the victory in the World Anti-Fascist War and the founding of the United Nations, Liu said.

They will also adopt a series of outcome documents on strengthening security, economic and cultural cooperation, charting the course for the future development of the SCO, he added.

The SCO Tianjin Summit comes against the backdrop of a complex and volatile international landscape with regional conflicts intensifying, economic uncertainties growing and livelihood issues in some countries becoming more pronounced.

Liu said the more complex and turbulent the international situation becomes, the more important it becomes for countries to strengthen unity and cooperation to promote common development.

China hopes to take the SCO Tianjin Summit as an opportunity to work with other SCO member states to build up political consensus, boost the momentum for cooperation, send out united voices and take joint actions, in order to leverage the stability and resilience of the SCO to address the uncertainties of the international environment, Liu said.

Since its founding in 2001, the SCO has been steadily improving its cooperation mechanisms and expanding its global reach. The number of SCO member states has grown from the original six to 10, now representing nearly half of the global population and about a quarter of the world's GDP. Additionally, the SCO has two observer states and 14 dialogue partners.

Chen Yu, deputy director of the Institute of Eurasian Studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said the SCO Tianjin Summit could have more positive bearings on the international situation, helping to promote the development of a multipolar world and enhance the influence of developing countries.

The Shanghai Spirit, transcending the Cold War mentality, can help address deficits in global governance, Chen said.

Xue Tianhang, an associate researcher at Zhejiang University's Institute for National Strategy and Regional Development, said that facing the complex and volatile international landscape, the SCO should maintain strategic clarity, strengthen confidence, act decisively and deliver greater results.

SCO member states should join hands to overcome difficulties together, injecting more stability and positive dynamism into the world, Xue said.