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Asian leaders gather amid China’s efforts to expand influence

The summit brings together more than a dozen leaders as China and Russia press economic cooperation and a multipolar message amid sanctions and war.

  • On Monday, August 31, 2026, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian gathered in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, for a two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit marking the bloc's 25th anniversary.
  • Founded as the 'Shanghai Five' in 1996, the SCO now encompasses 10 nations representing 40 percent of the global population and serves as a counterweight to Western influence, offering sanctioned members a platform to strengthen ties.
  • During bilateral meetings, Putin and Xi discussed making their visa-free regime permanent after tourist traffic surged 43 percent in the first half of 2026; Putin and Pezeshkian focused on Middle East tensions.
  • Negotiations for the Power of Siberia-2 pipeline remain stalled over pricing disputes, while international relations expert Mohammad Hassan Najmi told AFP that 'in times of crisis, these alliances have rarely allowed Iran to resolve its difficulties.'
  • Following the summit, Putin is scheduled to travel to Vladivostok for the Eastern Economic Forum on September 1, signaling Moscow's pivot to secure economic interests in the Pacific as the SCO evolves into an Eurasia-centric platform.
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The presidents of Russia and China met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit. Putin and Xi praised bilateral relations, while the Russian president is expected to meet his Iranian counterpart. The post Putin-Xi meeting in Kyrgyzstan and in the background Pezheskian – “Cooperation, a model of interstate relations” appeared first on in.gr.

·Greece
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Right

China's head of state and party Xi Jinping and Russia's President Vladimir Putin have emphasized their cooperation in Kyrgyzstan in the difficult times for Moscow due to Western sanctions. According to Moscow, the cooperation is developing successfully in economic and all other respects. This is said by a highly confident Putin at the meeting with Xi in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek. There, the Central Asian Republic celebrated its 35th anniversary…

·Vienna, Austria
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dailybusiness.ro broke the news on Sunday, August 30, 2026.
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