ISLAMABAD; Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday expressed optimism about strengthening Pakistan’s ties with China and engaging with regional partners as he landed in Tianjin to attend the 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Heads of State Council summit.
The two-day gathering, scheduled for Sunday and Monday, will bring together more than 20 world leaders in what observers see as one of the most significant demonstrations of Global South solidarity in recent years.
Accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, the prime minister described his visit as “historic.” In a message posted on X, he wrote: “I look forward to meeting H.E. President Xi Jinping and other world leaders to further build upon our bilateral ties with China, our All Weather Strategic Cooperative Partner, as well as with other key countries of the region. Our aim is to enhance regional cooperation, strengthen multilateralism, and advance shared goals for peace and prosperity.”
According to the Foreign Office (FO), Shehbaz is leading Pakistan’s delegation at the SCO Council of Heads of State (CHS) summit from August 31 to September 1. The summit will host leaders from the 10 member states including China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Belarus, alongside representatives of 16 observer and “dialogue partner” countries.
Guests will include leaders from Mongolia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkiye, Egypt, the Maldives, and Myanmar, as well as the United Nations secretary-general and heads of various international organisations.
The FO noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz will present Pakistan’s perspective on key global and regional challenges, focusing on the SCO’s role in fostering peace, cooperation, and stability. He is also expected to reaffirm Pakistan’s commitment to multilateralism, regional security, and sustainable development. In addition to participating in the summit sessions, Shehbaz is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang, and other SCO leaders.
The official agenda also includes Shehbaz’s participation in a military parade in Beijing alongside President Xi and other leaders. The parade marks the 80th anniversary of the World Anti-Fascist War, a commemoration that Beijing has highlighted as a reminder of global unity against aggression.
Beyond political engagements, the Pakistani leader will also meet prominent Chinese business executives, address a Pakistan–China B2B Investment Conference, and promote new avenues for trade and investment.
The Foreign Office underlined that the visit builds on a tradition of leadership-level exchanges between Islamabad and Beijing, reaffirming the two countries’ “All Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership.” It said the discussions would cover Phase II of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), support for each other’s core interests, and coordination on key regional and global issues.
Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar echoed this in his own post on X, stressing that Pakistan’s strategic partnership with China is “anchored in trust and strategic alignment.” He praised President Xi’s flagship initiatives, including the Belt and Road, and the Global Development, Security and Civilisation Initiatives, noting that these projects “continue to transform economies and strengthen regional integration.”
Dar added that the SCO has emerged as a pivotal Eurasian platform, promoting cooperation in areas such as security, trade, energy, connectivity, and culture. “In today’s multipolar world,” he said, “the SCO’s role in advancing multilateralism, stability, and inclusive growth is more vital than ever.”
The Pakistani government has already indicated that Shehbaz’s visit will mark the formal launch of the long-delayed second phase of CPEC. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who oversees the project, said last week that both sides will “set clear priorities and agree on tangible, measurable outcomes” under CPEC-II, with a focus on industrial cooperation.
In July, Islamabad and Beijing agreed to establish technical working groups on high-yield cotton seed development, advanced irrigation methods, and modern agricultural practices — part of efforts to broaden the scope of the corridor beyond infrastructure and energy projects.
The SCO summit is also drawing wide international attention because of the simultaneous presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Modi’s arrival marks his first visit to China since 2018, following years of frosty ties between the two Asian giants, exacerbated by their 2020 border clashes.
Analysts note that his presence, directly after a major visit to Japan where Tokyo pledged $68 billion in investment to India, suggests an attempt by New Delhi to balance ties across the region. A limited thaw in China–India relations began in late 2023 when Modi met President Xi on the sidelines of a summit in Russia.
Xi Jinping, hosting the event, has already welcomed Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Egyptian Premier Moustafa Madbouly, with Putin expected to arrive shortly before the summit. Other prominent attendees include Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This makes the 2025 gathering the largest SCO summit since the organisation’s founding in 2001.
Russia and China have increasingly leveraged the SCO as a platform to consolidate their influence in Central Asia and counterbalance Western blocs such as NATO. The Kremlin announced that Putin will meet Erdogan on Monday to discuss the Ukraine conflict. Turkiye has already hosted three rounds of talks between Moscow and Kyiv this year, though none produced a breakthrough.
Putin will also confer with Iran’s President Pezeshkian on Tehran’s nuclear programme, at a time when Britain, France, and Germany have triggered a “snapback” mechanism to reinstate UN sanctions against Iran for failing to comply with its 2015 nuclear deal commitments.
Russia’s foreign ministry warned that the reimposition of sanctions could lead to “irreparable consequences,” underscoring how regional disputes will dominate discussions in Tianjin. Tehran and Moscow have tightened their political, military, and economic partnership over the past decade, with ties deepening further since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
For Pakistan, the summit offers a chance to push forward its economic diplomacy while reaffirming solidarity with regional partners. Officials in Islamabad emphasise that Shehbaz Sharif’s meetings with Xi Jinping will not only focus on CPEC-II but also on broader strategic cooperation at a time of shifting geopolitical alignments.
With leaders from South Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East, and beyond converging in Tianjin, the 25th SCO summit is set to underline the bloc’s ambition to act as a central platform for dialogue, connectivity, and cooperation in an increasingly fragmented world order.
