Beijing is set to welcome more than a dozen world leaders at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit and a massive military parade coming this week. The guest list and omissions from it provide a view of China’s influence and its alliances and ambitions.
The two events will include high-profile guests of Chinese President Xi Jinping, including Russian and North Korean leaders, as well as heads of state and government from most Southeast Asian and Central Asian nations. SCO summit is set to be held on Sunday and Monday, while the military parade will take place on Wednesday.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a group established by China and Russia in 2001 with a focus on security in Central Asia and the wider region. The second event, is a massive military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, where China emerged victorious over its neighbour, Japan.
Despite the inclusion of heads of major countries, the guest lists for the SCO forum and the military parade don’t fully overlap, reflecting Beijing’s interests, loyalties and limitations among its neighbours. Russia, India and Central Asia will be present at the SCO summit.
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SCO summit attendees
The guest list for the SCO summit includes leaders of the organisation’s 10 member states, along with representatives from almost two dozen other countries, some of which may join the group at a later date.
Top dignitaries include:
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
- Russian President Vladimir Putin
- Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
- Egyptian Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly
Some countries that are not SCO members will also be represented, mostly from Southeast Asia. These include Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam, reflecting China’s desire to shore up its ties within the region.
Military parade attendees
Not everyone included in the SCO summit will stay for the military parade. Most of the high-level guests at the SCO forum and the military parade will overlap, but there will be some notable departures and additions as well.
Leaders of India, Egypt and Turkey will leave Beijing before the military parade. Egypt will be represented by a lower-level official.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will be joining Xi and Putin in observing the Chinese troops in the military parade. Kim Jong Un, who will not have attended the earlier SCO summit, will meet Xi in more than six years.
Additionally, Myanmar’s junta chief, Min Aung Hlaing, who is the country’s acting president in the wake of a military coup in 2021, will also attend the military parade.
Leaders of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe will also be there to represent their respective countries. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is also expected to join.
(With inputs from AP)
