Ushakov: Putin intends to meet Xi Jinping and Erdogan on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Summit

Russia – Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov said that President Vladimir Putin will hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, including the leaders of China, Turkey and other leaders.

“Bilateral talks will be held on July 3, before the opening of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit. We are expected to hold the first of them with Mongolian President Khurelsukh, followed by a meeting with Azerbaijani President Aliyev, then with Pakistani leader Sharif, and following that, talks with Erdogan, followed by a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Before leaving for an informal dinner for the summit participants, our President will meet with its host, President Tokayev,” he added.

Ushakov noted that the Russian leader’s schedule on July 4 is “mainly devoted to summit events,” but there may be time for “short, brief bilateral contacts.”

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit is scheduled to be held in the Kazakh capital, Astana, on July 3-4, under the slogan “Strengthening multilateral dialogue – striving for sustainable peace and development.” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will also participate.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is an international organization founded in 2001, which includes India, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.

Observer countries are Afghanistan, Belarus and Mongolia, and partner countries are Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Sri Lanka.

In July 2023, at the SCO summit in New Delhi, Iran became a full member of the organization, and there Belarus signed a memorandum of commitments in order to obtain the status of a member state of the organization, and Belarus is expected to become a full member of the SCO at the summit to be held this July.

Source:RT