Will support India in organising SCO summit next year: Chinese President Xi Jinping

Samarkand, Sep 16: Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday extended support to India for its Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) presidency next year.

"We will support India for its presidency next year," Xi Jinping said at the ongoing SCO summit in Samarkand.

There has been intense speculation that PM Modi could meet with President Jinping in the event of disengagement by the armies of both countries at PP-15 at Gogra Hot Springs. If this would to take place this would be the first face-to-face bilateral between the two leaders in nearly three years. However both countries have not officially announced anything as yet.

"We will keep you fully apprised when the PM's schedule of bilateral meetings unfolds," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said when asked if PM Modi and the Chinese President will have a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the summit.

India will host the Shanghai Cooperation Organisationsummit in 2023, which would see the process of Iran becoming a full member of the eight-nation influential grouping.

The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the presidents of Russia, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Over the years, it has emerged as one of the largest trans-regional international organisations.

India and Pakistan became its permanent members in 2017.