Xi's Central Asia trip a landmark visit at critical historic juncture: Chinese official

A man rides past a logo of the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on Sept. 12, 2022. (Xinhua/Bai Xueqi)

BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Central Asia is a landmark at a critical historic juncture and attracted worldwide attention, a Chinese official said Tuesday.

Liu Jiangping, deputy director-general of the Department of European and Central Asian Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, made the comment at a press briefing after Xi's first overseas trip since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Xi attended the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in the city of Samarkand in Uzbekistan, and paid state visits to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan from Sept. 14 to 16.

"President Xi attended almost 30 events within three days, a tight schedule but fruitful trip," Liu said.

Thanks to the joint efforts of Xi and other leaders, the SCO Samarkand summit adopted 44 documents, which reflects SCO's aspiration to jointly respond to new threats and challenges by coordinating positions in a turbulent world, Liu said.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the SCO Charter and 15th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on Long-Term Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation by the SCO Member States.

Liu said that the SCO had become an influential regional organization over the past two decades, contributing to regional security and stability as well as development and prosperity.

As the Samarkand summit ushered in a new round of expansion of the SCO membership, the largest scale in its history, it shows that more countries recognize and stand ready to practice the Shanghai Spirit, she said.

It also reflects that more countries would like to set a model of new international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness and justice as well as win-win cooperation on a larger scale, Liu added.

Sohail Khan, deputy secretary-general of the SCO, said the summit achieved many major outcomes and also set new goals.

Khan stressed China's importance in the SCO, saying the SCO will continue to cooperate with all parties according to its framework so as to play an active role in realizing regional peace, stability and common prosperity. ■