Overview
- The SCO summit in Bishkek concluded with leaders signing the Bishkek Declaration on September 1, 2026, which lays out joint positions on terrorism, trade, Afghanistan, nuclear non‑proliferation and Middle East diplomacy.
- Chinese president Xi Jinping used the SCO‑Plus platform to call for an 'equal and orderly multipolar world' and for reforms to global governance, a message reinforced by participation from U.N. Secretary‑General António Guterres.
- Delegations approved amendments to the SCO Charter and regulations to create a SCO Universal Centre for Countering Security Challenges and an SCO Anti‑drug Center, but those bodies are currently at an early regulatory stage rather than operational entities.
- Kyrgyzstan handed the SCO chairmanship to Pakistan, with Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif assuming the 2026–27 chair, and member states reiterated support for Iran’s sovereignty while calling for political and diplomatic conflict resolution in the Middle East.
- Analysts said the summit was rhetorically significant yet operationally subdued, leaving follow‑through on items such as a proposed SCO development bank, intelligence sharing and concrete connectivity projects as the key test for the organisation’s next year.