Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday urged members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to step up cooperation on artificial intelligence while rejecting what he called a “Cold War mentality.”
Speaking at the largest SCO summit to date in Tianjin, Xi addressed more than 20 foreign leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The gathering comes as China positions itself as a peacemaker amid ongoing trade disputes with the United States, the war in Ukraine, and the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Xi said China has invested $84 billion in SCO countries and pledged to support 10,000 students through Beijing’s “Luban” vocational program. He described the summit as an opportunity to chart a new stage of development and cooperation.
Ahead of his remarks, Xi briefly stood alongside Putin and Modi during a group photo session. Putin is expected to remain in China for a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of World War II’s end. Over the weekend, Xi held bilateral meetings with leaders including Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Cambodia’s Hun Manet. He also met with Modi on Saturday, with both sides stressing the importance of partnership over rivalry.
“A stable relationship and cooperation between India and China and their 2.8 billion peoples on the basis of mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity are necessary for the growth and development of the two countries,” India’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Analysts said improving ties with India could boost China’s influence and help reshape regional dynamics. “The improvement of relations with India is a big deal. It allows India to access highly critical intellectual property that it needs if it is to industrialize and boost manufacturing,” Marko Papic, chief strategist at GeoMacro Strategy BCA Access, said in an email.
China also introduced new initiatives during the summit. Xi announced cooperation platforms in new energy, green industries, the digital economy and technology innovation, as well as centers for higher and vocational education. Leaders signed a “Tianjin Declaration” and adopted a decade-long development plan through 2035, according to state media.
Later in the day, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi confirmed that the bloc had agreed to launch an SCO Development Bank. He emphasized multilateral cooperation, saying, “Global governance must be achieved by coordination and cooperation, not by unilateral bullying.”
Xi also proposed a “Global Governance Initiative,” following his earlier programs on global development and security. Without providing specifics, he urged members to commit to peaceful coexistence and to reject protectionism.
“The Cold War mentality, hegemonism and protectionism remain,” Xi said, according to an official English translation. “Global governance has come to a new crossroads.”
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