During the opening of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China, leaders Xi Jinping of China and Vladimir Putin of Russia expressed strong criticisms towards the West. The summit aims to elevate China’s role in regional collaborations.
Addressing around 20 leaders from the Eurasian region, Xi called for a global system rooted in fairness, emphasizing the need to uphold a historical perspective of World War II and to counter the Cold War mentality as well as the bloc politics and coercive policies of certain nations, implicitly referring to the United States.
The summit commenced just days ahead of a significant military parade in Beijing, commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization includes ten member states: China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Belarus. Collectively, these nations represent nearly half of the world’s population and account for 23.5% of the global GDP. The organization is presented as a counterweight to NATO, with some of its members being rich in energy resources.
Xi remarked that “the current international situation is becoming chaotic and complex, while the security and developmental challenges facing member states are intensifying.”
He continued, stating, “As the world experiences turmoil and transformation, we must keep moving forward and strive to fulfill the organization’s objectives more effectively.”
Putin, during his address, defended Russia’s actions in Ukraine, attributing the war’s onset to the West’s role in instigating the conflict that has led to numerous casualties and extensive destruction in eastern Ukraine.
He asserted, “This crisis did not stem from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but was a consequence of the coup in Ukraine, supported and caused by the West.” He also pointed to “the persistent efforts of the West to draw Ukraine into NATO” as a contributing factor to the crisis.
Putin arrived on Sunday morning with limited media coverage, even though he heads a substantial political and economic delegation, according to Russian and Chinese state media.
Xi held a series of bilateral meetings with various leaders, including Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of Putin, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is visiting China for the first time since 2018.
Other participants at the summit included Iranian President Massoud Bezhazkiyan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Footage showed Xi, Putin, and Modi engaged in conversation, surrounded by their interpreters.
During the discussions, Modi conveyed to Xi India’s commitment to “advance our relations based on mutual trust and dignity.”