SCO Council of Heads of State summit begins in Bishkek

BISHKEK, September 1. /TASS/. The main part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Heads of State summit has begun in Kyrgyzstan's capital of Bishkek, a TASS correspondent reported.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov is welcoming each leader arriving for the meeting; he has already greeted Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The summit will kick off with a Council of Heads of State meeting. Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov told reporters that the leaders would review the organization's activities in the past 25 years and discuss efforts to further strengthen the SCO and expand cooperation in politics, security, the economy, and humanitarian ties. The SCO leaders will also exchange views on pressing international and regional issues, with a special focus on improving the organization’s operation.

After the SCO session, a traditional SCO+ meeting will be held, bringing together the leaders of SCO observer countries, dialogue partners and guests invited by the chair. According to the Kyrgyz presidential press service, the leaders of SCO member states will particularly be joined by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, Togo’s Prime Minister Faure Gnassingbe, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Laotian President Thongloun Sisoulith, Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan, and Egyptian Deputy Prime Minister Hussein Eissa. The meeting will also be attended by the heads of several international organizations, including the United Nations, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).