China plans to accelerate the creation of a development bank and set up an international platform for energy cooperation, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Monday at a summit that represents an emerging challenge to U.S. global leadership with the participation of Russia and India.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi were among the leaders meeting in Tianjin, in northern China, for the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. The security forum was originally seen as a foil to U.S. influence in Central Asia and has grown in size and influence over the years.
Xi is attempting to expand the scope of the SCO. He announced initial plans for a development bank run by the organization, introduced a cooperation platform for green and energy industries and pledged $1.4 billion in loans over the next three years to the organization’s members.
Xi also said he was opening the way for SCO member states to use China’s BeiDou satellite system, an alternative to the GPS system controlled by the U.S.
Putin expressed support for Xi’s initiatives, saying he believes the SCO “could take on the leading role in efforts to form a more just and equal system of global governance in the world.”
Laos joined the SCO as a partner, a designation short of full membership, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told reporters. The combined group of members and partners has reached 27, representing countries in Central and Southeast Asia, along with China, India, Russia, Iran and others.
“The shadows of Cold War mentality, bullying, are not dissipating, and there are new challenges that are increasing, not diminishing,” said Xi, who has consistently spoken against what he calls a Cold War mentality, which is his way of referring to the tough approach to China by the U.S.
“The world has entered a new period of tumultuous change and global governance has arrived at a new crossroads,″ he said.
Alfred Wu, a professor at the National University of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, explained that Xi is seeking “to provide an alternate world order, because the U.S.-led world order is very much in decline.”
Putin echoed those themes in his own address and expressed support for Xi’s proposal “to create a new, more effective and functional system of global governance.”
Founded in 2001, the SCO now includes Russia, Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Afghanistan and Mongolia are observer states, and 14 other countries, including several from the Middle East, serve as “dialogue partners.”
The summit comes days ahead of a military parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of Japan’s World War II surrender.
On Sunday, Xi met with Modi and the two leaders vowed to resolve differences surrounding a border dispute, which led to a freeze in relations in 2020.
Putin arrived for the summit Sunday and will attend the parade Wednesday. Modi will not stay for the parade.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who did not attend the SCO summit, will be present for the military parade, along with the leader of Myanmar’s military government, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.
Putin spoke to Xi on Sunday, ahead of the bilateral talks the two were scheduled to hold Tuesday. He updated the Chinese leader on the Russia-U.S. talks on the Ukraine war which were held in Alaska last month.
Development policy has been a large part of the messaging in recent days. Putin, in an interview released Saturday by China’s news agency Xinhua, said Russia and China were jointly “against discriminatory sanctions” that hurt the socioeconomic development of the world at large.
Russia, alongside its Chinese partners, supports the reform of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, he said.
“It is essential to end the use of finance as an instrument of neocolonialism, which runs counter to the interests of the global majority,” Putin said.
China is set to unveil a ship-destroying hypersonic missile at a military parade, amid heightened tensions with the West.
Satellite images show scores of weapons, including drones and missiles, lined up in a staging area outside Beijing ahead of Wednesday’s parade.
New missiles were also seen on military trucks rolling through the streets of Beijing in a dry-run, including the soon-to-be-unveiled YJ-17 hypersonic missile.
Details are shrouded in mystery but experts expect the weapon will be capable of reaching speeds up to Mach 8, or 6,100mph.
It has a projected range of 750 miles, allowing it to strike distant naval targets without exposing launch platforms to counter-attacks.
The parade, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, is a major event for China, with Xi Jinping expected to give a speech.
Tens of thousands of soldiers will march in formation through Tiananmen Square, including troops from dozens of brigades, as well as veterans.
It will take place days after a meeting of world leaders at the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO), including Russia’s Vladimir Putin, India’s Narendra Modi, and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un.
Putin and Kim are expected to stay on and watch the military parade as guests of honour as China seeks to deepen its ties with Russia and North Korea against the backdrop of increased tensions with the US.
A Chinese official said a large number of weapons would be on display that have never been seen before.
Military analysts believe the YJ-17 has the potential to carry warheads weighing between 600lb and 1,100lb, giving it powerful armour-piercing capabilities.
It appears the missile has been designed to penetrate heavily defended warships in a thinly veiled warning to the West to stay out of regional conflicts, most likely with Taiwan.
“Few countries have developed so many anti-ship missiles that cover all imaginable categories,” Mr Xu added.
Beijing is one of the world’s most prolific developers of hypersonic missiles, which are designed to evade traditional air-defence systems, such as the US Patriot missile.
The US and China have been locked in an arms race to develop the powerful weapons, as has Russia, having used them against Ukraine last year.
Under Xi, China has been spending heavily to modernise and upgrade its military. It is currently the world’s fourth-largest exporter, primarily to developing nations such as Pakistan.
Last week, Japan asked international leaders not to attend China’s parade because of its “anti-Japanese overtones”.
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