The annual Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit is gathering a diverse group of world leaders from 21 countries in Kyrgyzstan’s capital Bishkek, as they pursue new alliances, ambitions and opportunities with the rise of regional powers in the rapidly evolving multipolar Eurasia.
The two-day summit kicked off on Monday, focusing on political, economic and security engagements and cooperation, a long-promised development bank, connectivity, energy and trade routes strained by wars and conflicts, and the defining challenges of the Global South.
The SCO’s 10 members — China, India, Pakistan, Russia, Belarus, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan — speak for more than 40% of the world's population.
The bloc increasingly bills itself as an alternative to a Western-led order, as it is joined by leaders of at least 15 states as “dialogue partners,” spanning Central Asia and the rest of the continent, the South Caucasus, as well as the Middle East, including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Vietnam, as well as Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Armenia.
The bloc, which marked its 25th anniversary, was formed to address regional security issues after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but over time it has evolved into a powerhouse of multi-layered trade, security and political cooperation.
