Chinese President Xi Jinping called at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, for a greater global role for the organization, especially in the areas of security and technology. Xi stated that the organization has demonstrated "strong vitality" since its creation 25 years ago, and that one of the main lessons was the need to find a correct way to coexist without alliances, confrontation, or targeting third parties, in an apparent reference to the US-led military alliance system.
The Chinese leader stated that "the shadow of war persists" and that the world is "at a crossroads" between dialogue and confrontation, mutual benefit cooperation and "winner-take-all" competition. Xi called on SCO members to "firmly prevent" interference from external forces in the internal affairs of other countries and advocated that countries should "give priority to security and create a universal security environment."
In the technological field, Xi Jinping announced that China will carry out 100 scientific and technological projects with member countries of the organization over the next three years. The summit brings together, among other leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in a context of growing international instability marked by the conflicts in Ukraine and Iran.
The SCO was founded in 2001 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, later expanding to include India, Pakistan, Iran, and Belarus. Beijing has sought to strengthen the organization's role as a platform to promote a multipolar international order and increase China's influence among so-called Global South countries.
