Overview
- China’s foreign ministry confirmed that Xi will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek as part of a state visit to Kyrgyzstan, and will then travel to Egypt for a bilateral state visit.
- At the SCO meeting Xi is expected to press for deeper cooperation with member states, including Russia and Iran, using the forum to coordinate on international and regional security issues outside Western-led institutions.
- During the Kyrgyz stop Xi will hold talks with President Sadyr Japarov and take part in state events, as Kyrgyzstan prepares to assume the SCO presidency after the summit.
- The Egypt visit is Xi’s first state visit there in ten years and will include talks with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi aimed at contributing to regional peace and protecting China’s energy and trade links, a priority after recent disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
- The trip continues a pattern of targeted high-level diplomacy for Xi this year and could shape Beijing’s Eurasian strategy and energy security planning as China moves into a busy diplomatic season.