ANKARA

The formal session of the ongoing Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States summit began in China's northern Tianjin city on Tuesday.

Foreign ministers from all SCO member states, including China, Belarus, India, Iran, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, are participating in the two-day huddle.

Several regional and global issues, including Gaza, the Ukraine crisis and Iran's nuclear program, are expected to be discussed.

"At the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers meeting today, we reaffirmed our shared commitment to multilateralism, mutual respect, and regional stability," Pakistan's top diplomat Ishaq Dar said in a post on X.

"The Shanghai Spirit continues to guide us towards dialogue, mutual trust, and the pursuit of a more just and inclusive international order," he added.

During the meeting, the SCO ministers laid groundwork for upcoming summit in Tianjin between Aug 31 to Sept. 1, according to state-backed Xinhua News.

With the SCO Summit scheduled for this year in Tianjin, China, Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed hopes to meet the leaders of member states during the event to talk about the future growth of the SCO.

Xi urged the SCO to view “mutual benefit” and “trust” as the cornerstones of “cooperation, equality and consultation” as the means of participation and respect for different civilizations.

*Writing by Aamir Latif​​​​​​​