The 13th Peace Garden Peace Festival opened in Beijing on 21 September 2026, bringing the United Nations’ International Day of Peace into direct conversation with a narrative China and its regional partners have spent over a decade cultivating: the Silk Road Spirit. Held under the theme “New Silk Road, New Thinking Route: International Network Dialogue, Resolutions of Divergences and Conflicts,” the festival drew a formal greeting from Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev, delivered on his behalf by Deputy Secretary-General Sohail Khan — a message that offers a compact case study in how two very different peacebuilding traditions, one rooted in universal UN mandate and the other in cultural and civilisational narrative, are increasingly being woven together.

A Theme Built for the Moment

The timing was no coincidence: organisers deliberately scheduled this year’s festival to coincide with the International Day of Peace. The theme itself is worth sitting with, too. It does not simply invoke the Silk Road as a historical metaphor for connection, but explicitly frames it as a “thinking route” — a pathway not for goods or capital, but for dialogue capable of resolving divergence and conflict. That framing positions cultural and intellectual exchange as a peacebuilding tool in its own right, on equal footing with the diplomatic and security mechanisms more conventionally associated with conflict resolution.

The SCO’s Message: Diversity as Resource, Not Risk

SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev’s greeting to festival participants, delivered on his behalf by Deputy Secretary-General Sohail Khan, articulated a specific philosophical position on the relationship between cultural diversity and international stability. “The SCO proceeds from the premise that the diversity of civilizations and cultures is an important resource for international cooperation,” Yermekbayev stated. “At the same time, culture remains a universal language of communication that helps maintain dialogue and form a solid foundation for peace, good-neighbourliness and sustainable development.”

This is a notable framing choice. In much international discourse, civilisational and cultural diversity is treated primarily as a source of friction to be managed — a variable requiring careful diplomatic handling to prevent misunderstanding or conflict. Yermekbayev’s message inverts that framing, presenting diversity instead as a resource that strengthens cooperation, provided it is channelled through sustained dialogue. He added that this understanding is precisely why SCO member states have been steadily expanding interaction along the cultural and humanitarian track — an indication that, within the organisation’s broader architecture spanning security, economic, and political cooperation, cultural exchange is increasingly treated as a deliberate, formalised pillar rather than a peripheral gesture.

The choice to have Deputy Secretary-General Sohail Khan personally deliver the message, rather than issuing a written statement alone, also signals the weight the organisation placed on ensuring direct representation at the event.

Backgrounder: How the World Arrived at a Fixed Peace Day

The International Day of Peace did not begin as the fixed, globally synchronised observance it is today. The United Nations General Assembly first proclaimed the day in 1981 through resolution 36/67, initially anchoring its observance to the third Tuesday of September — a date that shifted each year depending on the calendar. Two decades later, in 2001, the General Assembly unanimously adopted resolution 55/282, fixing the date permanently at 21 September starting in 2002, and crucially designating it as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence.

That shift, from a floating calendar date to a fixed one carrying an explicit ceasefire mandate, mattered. It transformed the day from a loosely symbolic gesture into something with a concrete, if largely aspirational, ask directed at every UN member state and, implicitly, at parties to conflict everywhere: lay down arms, even briefly, on this one date. In the years since, that ask has been kept visible less through enforcement — the UN has no mechanism to compel a ceasefire — than through the accumulation of public observances, humanitarian appeals, and cultural events held annually around the world, of which Beijing’s Peace Garden Peace Festival is one recurring example.

Two Traditions, One Convening Point

What makes this year’s festival notable is not the SCO’s presence alone, but the specific alignment between two peacebuilding vocabularies that don’t automatically overlap. The UN’s Peace Day rests on universal, treaty-based legitimacy — a single date observed, at least nominally, by every member state regardless of political system or regional alignment, built around a concrete, if unenforceable, demand. The Silk Road Spirit is a more particular narrative, rooted in a specific historical memory of trade and exchange along ancient routes connecting China with Central Asia, the Middle East, and beyond, and has become a recurring rhetorical anchor for China’s Belt and Road Initiative and, increasingly, for institutions closely aligned with it, including the SCO.

These two traditions are not naturally identical, but they share a structural premise: that sustained contact and dialogue between different peoples and systems reduces, rather than increases, the likelihood of conflict. Beijing’s festival, by explicitly theming itself around a “New Silk Road” of dialogue on the same date the UN has set aside for global ceasefire, functions as a deliberate point of convergence between the two — one that allows an organisation like the SCO to situate its own cultural diplomacy squarely within a universally recognised international observance, lending it a legitimacy that a purely China-specific framing might not carry on its own.

Conclusion: What the Convergence Is Worth

Whether this convergence between UN Peace Day and Silk Road Spirit amounts to more than complementary rhetoric is the harder question, and one that a single festival greeting cannot answer. Cultural dialogue is, by most measures, a necessary but insufficient condition for peace — valuable for building the kind of sustained familiarity that makes cooperation easier, but not, on its own, capable of halting an active conflict or resolving a territorial dispute. The UN’s own experience with the International Day of Peace over more than four decades illustrates the point: the observance has grown in visibility and symbolic weight without acquiring any binding force, and armed conflicts have continued, in many years, on 21 September itself.

What events like the Peace Garden Peace Festival offer is narrower but not therefore negligible: a recurring, low-cost opportunity for institutions and individuals across different political and cultural traditions to use a shared vocabulary — dialogue, diversity as resource, civilisational exchange — even when their underlying interests and systems diverge sharply elsewhere. The real test of the Silk Road Spirit’s convergence with the UN’s peace ideal will not be found in any single greeting or festival theme, but in whether the habits of engagement they promote outlast the ceremony — whether the “New Thinking Route” this year’s festival invoked proves capable of carrying difficult conversations, not just celebratory ones, once the Peace Garden’s lanterns are packed away and the next 21 September approaches with its own unresolved conflicts still waiting for the ceasefire the day was designed to call for.

China’s premier annual defence and security gathering opened in Beijing this week, drawing official delegations from nearly 100 countries, regions, and international organizations to the Beijing International Convention Center. The 13th Beijing Xiangshan Forum, running from September 15 to 17, carries added weight this year as it marks the two-decade anniversary of a platform that has grown from a modest academic exchange into one of Asia’s most closely watched security dialogues.

Scale and Participation

Organizers confirmed that this year’s forum has attracted more than 60 ministerial-level representatives and military chiefs, alongside scholars, former officials, and defence analysts. Notably, Western participation remained substantial, with delegates from New Zealand, Australia, and Canada among those attending — a point Chinese officials have highlighted as evidence of what they describe as the forum’s spirit of openness and inclusiveness.

The three-day programme is structured around four plenary sessions and eight parallel thematic discussions, held under the theme “Build Consensus on Stability, Advance Security Governance Together.” In a move aimed at maximizing resource sharing and aligning outcomes, the forum ran alongside the fourth China-Africa Peace and Security Forum, linking two of Beijing’s key security diplomacy tracks in a single window.

The Agenda: From Regional Flashpoints to AI Safety

Discussions this year have ranged widely, from persistent regional tensions across the Indo-Pacific to newer challenges around the governance of artificial intelligence in military and security contexts — a topic that has climbed rapidly up the agenda at defence forums worldwide.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, a regular participant in regional dialogue initiatives, described the forum as a valuable platform for frank exchanges at a moment of rising tensions. Several experts in attendance pressed for stronger international cooperation on AI governance, arguing that the pace of technological development is outstripping the frameworks meant to regulate its military application, and called for expanded dialogue as a confidence-building measure.

Among the more pointed interventions came from British scholar Jean Christophe Baron von Pfetten, who held up China’s Global Governance Initiative Concept Paper — released in 2025 — and told attendees: “This is the key of the future in this world. This is promoted by China, not for China, but for the world.” In an earlier interview, he argued that “governance is the most critical factor,” adding that without multilateralism, security problems proliferate and the United Nations operates under constraints. He went further still, describing China as “currently the ‘engine’ of world peace.”

It’s worth noting that such characterizations reflect the views of individual participants at a forum hosted and shaped by Beijing, and they sit within a broader international debate in which many governments assess China’s regional security role quite differently.

Backgrounder: Two Decades of the Xiangshan Forum

Launched in 2006, the Beijing Xiangshan Forum began as a relatively low-key track-two dialogue convened by Chinese think tanks. Over the years it has been progressively elevated, expanding to include serving defence ministers and military chiefs, and is now widely regarded as China’s answer to the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore — the long-established security summit that has traditionally been shaped by Western and allied perspectives.

The forum’s growth mirrors the broader arc of Chinese defence diplomacy: a shift from participation in security conversations designed elsewhere toward hosting and framing those conversations directly. For Beijing, the platform serves several purposes at once — projecting an image of openness, offering a venue to articulate its own security concepts, and providing a setting for bilateral military-to-military contacts on the sidelines, including with the United States, whose relationship with China remains the single most consequential variable in Asian security.

A Wider Institutional Push

The forum does not exist in isolation. Beijing has been steadily reinforcing a network of regional institutions through which it channels security and economic cooperation. In August, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev attended an event at the ASEAN-China Centre in Beijing marking anniversary milestones in China-ASEAN cooperation and the transition to new Secretary-General Zhang Lizhong, succeeding Shi Zhongjun. Yermekbayev used the occasion to acknowledge the Centre’s role in fostering interaction between ASEAN, the SCO Secretariat, and other regional partners — a reminder of how China’s various multilateral tracks increasingly interlock.

Way Forward: Governance, Competition, and the Question of Trust

The central proposition advanced at this year’s forum — that stability requires collective security governance rather than bloc-based arrangements — lands at a moment of genuine international uncertainty. Whether that proposition gains traction will depend less on the quality of the argument than on the durability of trust between major powers.

For China, the strategic logic is clear enough. Positioning itself as a convener of inclusive security dialogue offers a counterweight to alliance structures it views as containment-oriented, while the Global Governance Initiative provides a conceptual framework for its broader diplomatic ambitions. The presence of Western delegations suggests that even amid strategic competition, few governments are willing to forgo the channels of communication such forums provide.

The harder test lies ahead. Dialogue platforms are valuable precisely because they keep lines open during periods of friction — but they are not substitutes for the concrete mechanisms, crisis hotlines, and verifiable agreements that prevent miscalculation from escalating. As AI governance, maritime disputes, and US-China military competition all intensify simultaneously, the Xiangshan Forum’s second decade will likely be judged not by how many delegations it attracts, but by whether the consensus it seeks to build translates into arrangements that hold when tested.

OIC Delegation’s visit to Aims to Strengthen Dialogue and Cooperation in Cultural, Technology, Health and Development sectors

A high-level delegation representing 20 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Member States and the OIC General Secretariat is undertaking an official visit to the People’s Republic of China from September 3 to 8, 2026, at the invitation of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The visit forms part of what both sides describe as a constructive and ongoing dialogue between the OIC and China.

China Hosts A high-level OIC delegation representing 20 Member States to strengthen dialogue on political, economic, and cultural cooperation.

A Delegation Spanning Three Geographical Groups

The visiting delegation brings together ambassadors, delegates and representatives from across the OIC’s diverse membership, reflecting the organization’s three geographical groups. Among the senior figures leading the delegation is His Excellency Ambassador Dya-Eddine Said Bamakhrama, Ambassador of the Republic of Djibouti and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, whose presence lends additional diplomatic weight to the mission. He is joined by a number of other delegates and representatives drawn from OIC Member States across the organization’s regional groupings.

The OIC General Secretariat itself is represented by His Excellency Mr. Yousef bin Mohammed Al-Dobeay, Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs, whose involvement signals the institutional importance the OIC has attached to the visit. His participation places the trip within the broader context of the OIC’s political engagement strategy, rather than treating it as a purely ceremonial or symbolic exercise.

China Hosts A high-level OIC delegation representing 20 Member States to strengthen dialogue on political, economic, and cultural cooperation.

From Shanghai to Ningxia: A Multi-City Itinerary

The delegation’s visit began on Thursday, September 3, 2026, in Shanghai, one of China’s principal commercial and diplomatic hubs. There, delegates met with a number of high-ranking Chinese officials and visited several sites of particular significance to the visit’s themes, including the historic Shanghai Mosque — a landmark reflecting the long history of Muslim communities in China — as well as leading Chinese companies operating in the technology, health, and development sectors.

The itinerary is set to continue in the days following the Shanghai leg, taking the delegation to several cities in China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, an area home to a substantial Muslim population. According to details of the visit, this leg of the trip is intended to allow delegates to assess conditions faced by the Muslim community in Ningxia directly, alongside holding official meetings with representatives of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and regional authorities. Officials have indicated that this stage of the visit is meant to help strengthen constructive dialogue and communication between the OIC and China across a range of fields.

Technology, Health and Development on the Agenda

The choice to include visits to Chinese companies in the technology, health, and development sectors during the Shanghai leg points to an agenda that extends beyond traditional diplomatic and religious-affairs discussions. By exposing delegates to Chinese firms operating in these fields, the visit appears designed to explore potential areas of practical cooperation between OIC Member States and China — areas that could feed into future economic, scientific, or development partnerships between Beijing and the Muslim-majority world.

This dimension of the visit reflects a broader pattern in China’s engagement with international partners in recent years, in which cultural and diplomatic exchanges are frequently paired with exposure to China’s commercial and technological sectors, positioning Chinese companies as potential partners for cooperation alongside government-to-government dialogue, and cultural connectivity for better understanding.

Assessing Conditions of Muslim Communities in China

A notable feature of the visit’s itinerary is the planned assessment of conditions faced by the Muslim population in Ningxia. This component of the trip suggests that the visit is intended, at least in part, to provide OIC representatives with a firsthand, on-the-ground perspective on the situation of Muslim communities in China — a subject that has drawn significant international attention and scrutiny in recent years, particularly concerning Muslim minority populations in other regions of the country. The inclusion of Ningxia, rather than other regions, focuses the delegation’s direct observations on a Hui Muslim community with a long-established presence in Chinese society.

Backgrounder: China and the Islamic World in a New Era

The OIC delegation’s visit comes against the backdrop of an increasingly active relationship between China and the broader Islamic world. Over the past decade, China has significantly deepened its engagement with Muslim-majority countries, driven in large part by the Belt and Road Initiative, which has drawn extensive Chinese investment into infrastructure, energy, and trade projects across the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia, and parts of Africa — regions home to many OIC Member States.

Beyond economic ties, China has periodically sought to position itself as a partner for dialogue with the Islamic world on political and cultural matters, including through periodic high-level exchanges with the OIC itself, an organization that represents 57 member states and serves as the collective voice of the Muslim world on the international stage. Such engagements have typically sought to balance discussion of economic cooperation with attention to cultural and religious dimensions of the relationship, including the standing of China’s own Muslim population, which includes both the Hui community — concentrated in regions such as Ningxia — and other Muslim ethnic groups elsewhere in the country.

This visit, bringing together representatives from 20 OIC Member States alongside senior OIC leadership, represents one of the more substantial recent efforts to formalize and expand this dialogue, combining diplomatic meetings, exposure to China’s commercial and technological sectors, and direct engagement with Muslim communities within China itself.

Conclusion

The week-long visit by the OIC high-level delegation — spanning meetings in Shanghai and an extended itinerary in Ningxia — reflects a deliberate effort by both the OIC and China to broaden their dialogue beyond purely diplomatic exchanges into economic, technological, and community-level engagement. With senior representation from both the OIC General Secretariat and a wide cross-section of Member States, the visit signals continued momentum in China’s outreach to the Islamic world, even as questions about the treatment of Muslim communities in China remain part of the broader international conversation. The outcomes of the delegation’s meetings with Chinese officials in the coming days are likely to shape the next phase of OIC-China dialogue on political, economic, and cultural cooperation.

This article is based on the official details of the delegation’s visit as provided. The backgrounder section draws on general, publicly known context regarding China’s relations with OIC Member States and the Belt and Road Initiative; I was not able to independently verify additional specifics through web search, as browsing is not currently enabled in this conversation.

BISHKEK — Kyrgyzstan and China have taken a landmark step in their bilateral relationship, with President Sadyr Japarov and Chinese President Xi Jinping signing a Treaty on Everlasting Good-Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation between the two nations. The historic signing ceremony took place in Bishkek following extensive bilateral talks between the two leaders, marking a new chapter in Kyrgyz-Chinese relations.

The agreement comes as Bishkek hosts a series of high-level discussions on pressing international issues, with the talks unfolding on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit — one of the most significant multilateral gatherings of the year.

A Foundation for Deeper Strategic Partnership

Speaking ahead of the signing, President Sadyr Japarov emphasized the treaty’s long-term significance, noting that the document will “lay a solid foundation for the further qualitative development of the comprehensive strategic partnership” between Kyrgyzstan and China. The treaty formalizes decades of growing cooperation between the two neighboring nations and signals a deepened commitment to mutual trust, regional stability, and economic collaboration.

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Bishkek to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit 2026 and pay a state visit to Kyrgyzstan.

In total, 32 documents were signed during the talks between the two delegations. Beyond the central friendship treaty, the remaining agreements span a wide array of sectors, reflecting the breadth of cooperation between the two governments. These include accords at the Cabinet of Ministers and departmental levels covering:

• Border management and security
• Operations at the Bedel checkpoint
• Trade and economic cooperation
• Transport and infrastructure connectivity
• Agriculture
• Science and technology
• Education
• Culture
• Media and information exchange

The breadth of these agreements underscores the scale of the strategic relationship Kyrgyzstan and China are building, extending far beyond diplomatic symbolism into concrete, actionable cooperation across nearly every sector of governance and public life.

Xi Jinping’s State Visit and SCO Participation

Chinese President Xi Jinping is currently in Kyrgyzstan on an official state visit, one that coincides with his participation in two major multilateral events: the SCO Council of Heads of State meeting and the SCO Plus summit. His presence in Bishkek highlights the growing importance Beijing places on Central Asia as a strategic and economic partner, particularly amid shifting global geopolitical dynamics.

The two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit officially began in Bishkek on Monday, August 31, drawing a high-profile roster of world leaders. Alongside Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and more than a dozen other heads of state and government are taking part in the summit, making it one of the largest diplomatic gatherings hosted by Kyrgyzstan in recent memory.

The SCO, which brings together major Eurasian powers to coordinate on security, economic, and political matters, has increasingly become a platform for countries seeking alternatives to Western-led international frameworks. Bishkek’s role as host this year places Kyrgyzstan firmly at the center of regional diplomacy.

Xi Jinping Highlights “Community With a Shared Future”

During his meeting with President Japarov, Xi Jinping outlined China’s vision for the future of bilateral relations, stating that Beijing is ready to work with Kyrgyzstan to “better align development strategies, deepen exchanges of experience in governance, deliver more tangible and accessible outcomes of practical cooperation, and make substantive progress in building a China-Kyrgyzstan community with a shared future.”

Xi noted that under the joint guidance of the two leaders, bilateral relations have “made a leap forward,” with cooperation flourishing across all areas in recent years. This language echoes China’s broader foreign policy framework of building “communities with a shared future” with partner nations — a diplomatic concept Beijing has increasingly applied to its relationships across Central Asia and beyond.

Major Infrastructure Projects Advance

Among the concrete achievements Xi pointed to was the steady progress of major cooperation projects, most notably the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway — a long-anticipated infrastructure initiative that has been a cornerstone of regional connectivity ambitions for years. Xi said the railway and other joint projects have “provided effective support for the development of both countries,” while also benefiting local populations and contributing to peace, stability, and prosperity across the wider region.

The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway, once completed, is expected to significantly reshape trade routes across Central Asia, offering China a more direct land corridor to markets in Central and South Asia while giving Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan enhanced access to Chinese and international trade networks. Analysts have long viewed the project as a flagship initiative under China’s Belt and Road framework, with implications for regional economic integration well beyond the three countries directly involved.

Regional and Global Significance

The signing of the Everlasting Friendship Treaty, paired with the broader SCO Summit proceedings, reflects Kyrgyzstan’s growing diplomatic profile on the world stage. Hosting leaders such as Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin simultaneously — alongside more than a dozen other heads of state — positions Bishkek as a temporary nerve center for Eurasian geopolitics.

For Kyrgyzstan, the treaty offers reassurance of long-term Chinese investment and partnership, particularly important for a country seeking to diversify its economic ties and strengthen its infrastructure, trade, and governance capacity. For China, the agreement reinforces its strategic foothold in Central Asia, a region increasingly central to its Belt and Road Initiative and broader geopolitical ambitions.

As the SCO Summit continues in Bishkek over the coming day, further bilateral and multilateral discussions are expected, with officials likely to address regional security cooperation, economic integration, and coordinated responses to global challenges. The Kyrgyzstan-China treaty signed on the summit’s sidelines may well set the tone for how deeper bilateral partnerships are formalized among SCO member states going forward.

The full implications of the 32 signed agreements — spanning security, trade, culture, and infrastructure — are expected to unfold in the months ahead as both governments begin implementing the frameworks established during this historic visit.

• Asad Gillani is a veteran diplomat with nearly 30 years of service, he takes charge in Beijing,China,  at a time when Islamabad and China are further deepening strategic ties ahead of the SCO summit in Bishkek

• Syed Ali Asad Gillani replaces Ambassador Khalil Hashmi, who has completes his three-year tenure in Beijing,China.

By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

ISLAMABAD, JUL 26 /NSN/ — Pakistan has appointed seasoned diplomat Ambassador Syed Ali Asad Gillani as its new envoy to China, a move that comes at a pivotal moment as Islamabad and Beijing work to deepen strategic cooperation across diplomacy, defence, trade and regional connectivity.

Pakistan names Syed Ali Asad Gillani as an Envoy To China NSN Asia 2026The appointment places Gillani at the helm of one of Pakistan’s most consequential diplomatic postings, replacing Ambassador Khalil Hashmi, who is expected to return to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad after completing his three-year tenure in Beijing.

• A Career Diplomat with Deep China Experience

Gillani brings nearly three decades of diplomatic service to the role. He joined Pakistan’s Foreign Service in the 1990s and has since built an extensive career spanning postings across Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Notably, his relationship with China is not new — it stretches back more than twenty years to when he served as Third Secretary at the Pakistani Embassy in Beijing, giving him firsthand familiarity with the bilateral relationship he will now help steer at the ambassadorial level.

Most recently, Gillani held senior leadership positions at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, serving as Additional Secretary with oversight of key regional diplomatic affairs. He simultaneously served as Director General of the Foreign Service Academy, Pakistan’s premier institution for training career diplomats — a dual role that underscores his standing within the foreign policy establishment.

His academic credentials complement his field experience. Gillani holds a PhD in International Relations from the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara, Türkiye, giving him a scholarly grounding in the discipline alongside decades of practical diplomatic work.

• A Wide-Ranging Diplomatic Career

Over nearly 30 years in the Foreign Service, Gillani has held a series of high-profile overseas and domestic assignments. His overseas postings include:

• Beijing — Third Secretary
• Geneva — First Secretary
• Tokyo — Counsellor
• Ankara — Minister and Deputy Head of Mission
• Uzbekistan — Pakistan’s Ambassador

During his tenure as Ambassador to Uzbekistan, Gillani played an active role in strengthening bilateral relations, promoting trade and regional connectivity, engaging with the Pakistani diaspora, and participating in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) activities — experience that is likely to prove valuable given the SCO’s growing role in regional diplomacy.

At the Foreign Office headquarters in Islamabad, Gillani has also held a range of important positions, including Section Officer, Deputy Director, Director, and Deputy Chief of Protocol, along with senior roles covering political affairs, human resources and multilateral diplomacy.

• Taking Charge at a Critical Moment for Pakistan-China Ties

Gillani steps into his new role in Beijing at what officials describe as a crucial juncture for bilateral relations. China remains Pakistan’s largest strategic partner, with cooperation extending well beyond traditional diplomacy into defence collaboration, infrastructure development, energy projects, trade, technology, investment and regional security.

The appointment comes as Pakistan and China continue to expand collaboration under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the flagship connectivity and infrastructure initiative that has anchored bilateral economic ties for over a decade. Both countries have also been working to strengthen defence cooperation and coordinate closely on regional and global issues amid a rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape.

Gillani’s tenure begins ahead of the upcoming meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states, scheduled to take place in Bishkek on September 1, 2026 — a summit that will bring together SCO leaders, including from China and Pakistan, to discuss regional security, economic cooperation and connectivity issues. Given Gillani’s prior direct engagement with SCO activities during his posting in Uzbekistan, his appointment is seen as well-timed for a period in which multilateral platforms like the SCO are expected to feature prominently in Pakistan-China engagement.

Ambassador Khalil Hashmi assumed his responsibilities as Pakistan’s envoy to the People’s Republic of China on November 11, 2023. Prior to that appointment, he served as Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations and other International Organizations, as well as to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, from November 2019 to November 2023.

Hashmi’s earlier career includes service as Director General for the United Nations, the European Region, and Arms Control, as well as Director for Disarmament Affairs covering India and the South Asian region at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

His diplomatic postings have taken him to Pakistan’s embassies in Copenhagen (1999–2002) and Beijing (2008–2010). He also served twice at the Pakistan Mission to the United Nations in New York, first from 2004 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2016, including a stint as Deputy Permanent Representative.

Hashmi joined the Foreign Service of Pakistan in 1994. Over his career, he has worked extensively on arms control, counter-terrorism, human rights and climate change issues, and has attended numerous international conferences, chaired multilateral meetings, and taken part in a wide range of bilateral and multilateral negotiations. He is expected to take up a new assignment at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters in Islamabad following his return from Beijing.

• What the Appointment Signals

Analysts of Pakistan-China relations note that ambassadorial appointments to Beijing are typically closely watched, given the depth and sensitivity of the relationship. Gillani’s combination of early-career China experience, senior policy oversight roles, academic credentials and multilateral exposure through the SCO positions him to manage an increasingly complex bilateral agenda — one that spans economic corridor development, security cooperation, and coordination on regional diplomacy in forums such as the SCO.

With the Bishkek summit approaching in September 2026, Gillani’s early months in Beijing are likely to be shaped in part by preparations for that meeting, alongside the ongoing work of deepening CPEC-related cooperation and managing the broader strategic partnership between the two countries.

This report is based on official statements regarding the appointment. — NSN.Asia

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By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

Beijing: China has invited Afghan businessmen for their participation in the 7th edition of the China International Import Expo (CIIE 2024) to be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center from 5 to 10 November 2024, in the city of Shanghai, the commercial and financial hub of China.  

The China International Import Expo 2024 (CIIE 2024) promises to be a significant milestone in global trade, offering a unique opportunity for companies to expand their operations in a growing and dynamic market.

The was stated after meeting of Ambassador of the Islamic Emirate to China, Maulvi Bilal Karimi, with Shan Meng, the Deputy Director of the International Relations Department of the Council for the Development of International Trade (CCPIT) in the People’s Republic of China.

During this meeting in Beijing, Meng expressed his interest in expanding the current collaborative efforts in various sectors such as healthcare, smart vehicles, renewable energy, advanced agriculture, and digital systems to Afghanistan.

Meng further disclosed plans to invite the Embassy of the Islamic Emirate in Beijing and Afghan traders to participate in an exhibition showcasing these sectors in November of the current year.

In his remarks, Karimi highlighted the favorable investment and business prospects in Afghanistan, emphasizing the heightened support from businesspeople and investors associated with the Islamic Emirate. He underscored the readiness of the Islamic Emirate to undertake necessary steps for fostering and fortifying mutual economic and commercial cooperation.

This event of the China International Import Expo, organised by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China, is an exponent of international trade, especially focused on imports.

The CIIE is an import-themed fair that covers various industries, such as commercial services, medical technology, food products, household appliances, automobiles and fashion. The event takes place annually and serves as a meeting point to boost international trade and encourage purchasing agreements between suppliers and buyers.

The China International Import Expo Bureau and the Shanghai National Exhibition and Convention Center lead the organisation of this expo, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. The CIIE is a unique platform that allows China to welcome foreign manufacturers and brands, thus integrating itself into the global market on a large scale.

CIIE 2023, held between 5 and 10 November 2023, was attended by more than 3,400 exhibitors, including 289 of the Fortune 500 companies. This live event welcomed around 410,000 visitors and resulted in business deals worth an impressive 78,410,000,000 US dollars.

By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

Islamabad: Media speculations ‘India had rejected the invitation to the SCO meeting” are mounting across the social media of south Asian rivals, India and Pakistan, as the later formally sent invitation for SCO Heads of Governments Meeting, scheduled to in capital city, Islamabad,

However, Indian Ministry of External Affairs has reportedly denied these news reports in an official statement stating “We have noticed several outlets are running news that the PM won’t attend a SCO meeting in Pakistan or EAM will attend a SCO meeting in Pakistan. MEA hasn’t commented on this matter and would request speculative news in this regard be avoided,”.

Pakistan, as member of SCO, holds the rotating chairmanship of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government (CHG), and invitation was sent to PM Narendra Modi to attend the two-day SCO Heads of Governments Meeting.

“I can confirm that invitations have been extended to all Heads of Government of SCO member countries, including the Prime Minister of India, for the forthcoming meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. This meeting is scheduled to take place in Islamabad. We are not in a position to share the responses at this stage. Further updates will be shared in due course”, Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, told the weekly press briefing on Thursday.

“An invitation has also been sent to the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi (too)”, she added.

Some countries have already confirmed their participation in the SCO meeting, the official list of attendees has not been released, the statement noted.

India has not yet responded to the invitation for participation in the SCO meeting, she added.

When asked about ties with India, the spokesperson said, “Pakistan does not have direct bilateral trade with India.”

Earlier in 2023, India hosted SCO meeting in a virtual format, and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif attended the meeting through a video link.

Also, Pakistan’s then foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari visited India in May 2023 to attend the in-person two-day meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers in Goa, becoming the first Pakistani foreign minister to visit India in almost 12 years.

Political tensions between India and Pakistan have remained high over the last few years, primarily over state terrorism and the Kashmir

Since the last 77 years, both India and Pakistan have a long history of strained relations, primarily due to the Kashmir insurgency due to authoritarian rule of India and state sponsored terrorism across Pakistan.

The SCO Islamabad summit will be preceded by a ministerial meeting and several rounds of senior officials’ meetings focused on financial, economic, socio-cultural, and humanitarian cooperation among the SCO member States.

The SCO is a Eurasian economic and security grouping comprising India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization has emerged as a pivotal force is fostering regional and global cooperation under the Silk Road Spirit of mutual respect. Over the past 5 years, mutual trade between the SCO countries increased 1.5-fold — from $336 billion in 2019 to $490 billion in 2023.The main trading partners in the region are China with 64.6 percent of all mutual trade and Russia with 26.2 percent. Kazakhstan’s share is 3.3 percent.

By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

Vladivostok: The 9th Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), being organized by the Roscongress Foundation, began in Vladivostok, the Far East city of Russian on Tuesday, attracting more than 6,000 participants from 76 countries and regions.

The forum, themed “Far East 2030. Combining Strengths to Create New Potential,” runs from Tuesday to Friday and features around 100 events across seven tracks, including international cooperation, technological sovereignty, and transport logistics.

• Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim attending the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF)

“The official Malaysian delegation, led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, will take part in the Eastern Economic Forum. This visit marks the deepening of relations between the two countries,” said Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Malaysia to Russia Cheong Loon Lai.

The Malaysian delegation is expected to include Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamad bin Haji Hassan, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Aziz, Chief Minister of Selangor Amirudin Shari, two deputy ministers in charge of agriculture and economy, and other senior officials.

The Prime Minister will address the Plenary Session of the 9th EEF on 5 September 2024. EEF is an annual economic forum held in Russia’s Far East region, which started in 2015 to promote investment and economic development as well as international cooperation in the region. The Plenary Session of the 9th EEF, themed “Combining Strength to Create New Potential”, will be attended by high-level foreign and local dignitaries, policymakers, academics and captains of industries.

The Prime Minister is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. This meeting will provide an opportunity for both leaders to take stock and discuss bilateral relations, including trade and investment, higher education, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), agriculture and food security, and tourism, and explore collaboration in new areas such as aerospace and advanced technologies. They are also expected to exchange perspectives on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the situation in the Middle East.

The Prime Minister and President Putin are also expected to discuss cooperation within the context of the ASEAN-Russia Dialogue Partnership. The Prime Minister will also reiterate Malaysia’s interest to join BRICS to President Putin, who is holding the Chairmanship of BRICS for 2024.

During this visit, the Prime Minister is also accompanied by delegations from the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. Malaysia and the Russian Federation are committed to strengthening cooperation on food security, through the promotion of trade and investment, capacity building and research and development.

In 2023, the Russian Federation was Malaysia’s 8th largest trading partner among European countries.Total bilateral trade increased by 15.6% to RM14.22 billion (USD3.1 billion), compared with RM12.3 billion (USD2.79 billion) recorded in 2022.

• President Putin sends greetings to EEF 2024 participants

Greeting the participants, organizers, and guests of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) 2024, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in his message, said since its inception, the Forum has made a huge contribution to the development of constructive economic ties between Russia and other countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

Russian and foreign entrepreneurs, representatives of government agencies and public structures, and experts engage in direct and informal communication at the Forum, which makes it possible to discuss numerous pressing issues on the regional agenda and develop beneficial joint projects.

“This is reflected in the motto of the current Forum: ‘Far East 2030. Combining Strengths to Create New Potential’. The Asia-Pacific region’s role in international affairs is rapidly expanding. New opportunities for productive cooperation are being created here, including within the framework of such authoritative multilateral structures as the Eurasian Economic Union, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, and BRICS. I would like to reaffirm that Russia is open to a dialogue with all interested partners in the Asia-Pacific region and is committed to active cooperation in order to build a more just and democratic system of international relations that is free of dictate, force, and sanctions pressure and is based on genuine equality,” Putin said.

President Putin noted that the Forum participants will have an opportunity to think about new, promising forms of cooperation in various areas, ranging from transport, energy, and infrastructure to ecology and tourism.

“I hope that you will engage in constructive, meaningful discussions, and that your proposals and initiatives will be in demand on a practical level,” Putin said.

“We adhere to a multilateral approach in international relations. We support a multipolar world order, we support Russia in its attempts to build a new world order, within the framework of which superpowers like the US and its allies would not be able to impose their will on the world,”.

According to the expert, Russia and ASEAN have a lot in common “not only from the point of view of economic cooperation, but also from an ideological point of view.” Still, the expert says, there is room for growth in cooperation between the two sides, emphasizing, in particular, that ASEAN expects to work more closely with Russia in the security sphere.

“Vietnam may serve as a bridge uniting Russia and ASEAN. Our country can contribute to Russian initiatives on many tracks of cooperation, play its role not only in the Asia-Pacific region, but also beyond it,” said Bui Thanh Nam, a senior administration official at the Hanoi University of Social Sciences and Humanities while speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

Established in 2015, the EEF is a key international platform for establishing and strengthening ties within the Russian and global investment communities and for a comprehensive expert evaluation of the economic potential of the Russian Far East, the investment opportunities it offers, and business conditions within advanced special economic zones.

By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

Qingdao : The Shanghai Cooperation Organization Forum on Women, themed “Women’s Economic Empowerment through Digitalization” has opened in Qingdao, the coastal city of Shandong province of China.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization Forum on Women is dedicated to expanding women’s rights and opportunities in Central Asian countries.

The 2024 edition of Forum is featuring bilateral meetings, a welcome banquet, and a women’s handicraft exhibition.

This forum serves as a crucial platform for women from SCO member states to strengthen ties and drive collaborative growth. #FocusOnQingdao

The gathering of women at forum also highlights the SCO’s commitment to expanding women’s rights and opportunities.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday sent a congratulatory letter to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Forum on Women.

In his message, Xi said that women are important promoters of human civilization and social progress and have scored remarkable achievements in all walks of life. Since the forum’s launch, women of various countries, upholding the Shanghai Spirit, have contributed to the building of an even closer SCO community of a shared future.

It is hoped that the forum can continue to play a positive role in promoting amity and people-to-people interconnectivity among various countries, injecting fresh impetus into forging closer cultural bonds of SCO, Xi added.

Xi also stated that China is willing to work with all parties to promote scientific and technological innovation and the development of women’s causes via digital empowerment, and to jointly build a better SCO family.

Since the SCO’s inception 22 years ago, member states have developed key legislative documents on gender equality and approved relevant national programmes.

These documents have provided a strong legal foundation for addressing gender equality issues in the SCO region.

The forum covers various topics, such as the participation of women in science, education and innovation; the use of digital technologies; reducing poverty through the expansion of women’s economic rights and opportunities; promoting entrepreneurship and innovation among women; and enhancing the role of women in the global economy.

The forum is co-organized by the SCO, the All-China Women’s Federation (ACF), and the Shandong Provincial People’s Government, the forum gathers representatives from 26 countries.

Azerbaijan is represented at the event by the delegation led by Bahar Muradova, Chairperson of Azerbaijan’s State Committee for Family, Women and Children’s Affairs.

Shen Yiqin, Chinese State Councilor and ACF President, Zulaykho Makhkamova, Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, Li Hui, Special Representative of the Chinese Government on Eurasian Affairs, as well as Zhang Ming, SCO Secretary General made opening remarks, highlighting women’s active involvement in the socio-political and cultural life.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, established by China and Russia in 2001, is a Eurasian grouping fostering coopetition in political, economic, international security and defence areas.

SCO comprises of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, the acting president of Iran and the Foreign Minister of India while Belarus joined the SCO as the tenth full member state of the organization in July 2024.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization has emerged as a pivotal force is fostering regional and global cooperation under the Silk Road Spirit of mutual respect. Over the past 5 years, mutual trade between the SCO countries increased 1.5-fold — from $336 billion in 2019 to $490 billion in 2023.The main trading partners in the region are China with 64.6 percent of all mutual trade and Russia with 26.2 percent. Kazakhstan’s share is 3.3 percent.

By: Muhammad Arif, Editor NSN.Asia

Kazan, (Russian Federation, Republic of Tatarstan):  The countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, of which Pakistan is a member, have markedly increased their interaction with Russia. Total trade turnover has increased by 30 per cent over the past year. The rapprochement of the sides will continue at the XVI International Economic Forum “Russia – Islamic World: KazanForum”, which will be held from 13 to 18 May in the Russian Federation. An important issue for the participants will be the interaction between Russia and Pakistan.

Pakistan and Russia have many points of contact and grounds for developing co-operation. An important area is trade. Over the past 5 years, trade turnover between the countries has increased 1.5 times. This was helped by the opening of the St Petersburg-Karachi sea line. Russia actively exports food and agricultural products. Exports of mineral fertilisers are expected to grow and grain supplies are expected to resume. All this will enhance Pakistan’s food security.

The countries also interact within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). There are mutual interests here: strengthening industrial cooperation, creating independent financial institutions and payment and settlement mechanisms, expanding transport and logistics capabilities and regional interconnectivity.

To develop international logistics (including the North-South ITC), the modernisation of the railway section of the Quetta-Taftan route and the expansion of maritime freight traffic are under consideration.

Educational and cultural ties are developing. Last year, there were 11 per cent more budget quotas for Pakistani students in Russian higher education institutions. The most popular areas of training are medical treatment, construction, mechanical engineering and economics.

The XVI International Economic Forum Russia – Islamic World: KazanForum 2025 will show how joint projects can develop further. It will be held in Kazan (Russian Federation, Republic of Tatarstan) from 13 to 18 May. Now it is the main platform for business interaction between Russia and the countries of the Global South – Islamic World.

The previous KazanForum 2024 gathered more than 20 thousand participants, including 11978 business programme participants from 87 countries, including 57 OIC states. More than 40 diplomatic missions from Europe, Asia and Africa were represented. About 180 events were held within the framework of the forum, which resulted in the conclusion of 120 agreements. Traditionally, the participants of KazanForum are leading experts from the countries of the Islamic world: representatives of international organisations, national diplomatic missions, Islamic clergy, public authorities, financial institutions, large international business, members of parliaments, investors, entrepreneurs, heads of media corporations and mass media.

The aim of the forum is to strengthen trade and economic, scientific and technical, educational, social and cultural ties between the Russian Federation and the OIC countries.

The KazanForum 2025 programme includes more than 100 sessions and events on the following topics: international cooperation, business, Islamic finance and Halal industry, transport and logistics, science and technology, IT, industry, construction, medicine, education, tourism, culture, media industry and others.

One of the main events of KazanForum 2025 will be the first ever congress of OIC Ministers of Culture in the history of Russia. The event will take place in the city of Kazan, which has been appointed the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World in 2026, a decision made in Jeddah in February 2025 by the Culture Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation countries.

No less important event of the KazanForum 2025 business programme will be the annual international conference AAOIFI** on the theme: “Islamic Finance and Investment: Promoting Sustainable Development and Global Partnership”, which will also be held in Russia for the first time.

Also in the KazanForum 2025 programme: a meeting of the Ministers of Transport of the participating countries and the Agreement on the North-South International Transport Corridor, the Conference on the Development of Transport Logistics Potential of the Participating Countries, the second international real estate exhibition International Property Market 2025, the International Forum of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, the Russia Halal Expo, the Islamic Fashion Festival “Modest Fashion Day”, the International Tournament of Young Chefs of Islamic Countries, as well as separate special events and sessions for the media.

“The business programme of the forum invariably focuses on business, investment and trade and economic relations between the regions of the Russian Federation and the countries of the Islamic world. The forum has established itself as an effective platform for signing agreements, establishing real contacts that contribute to the implementation of joint projects, opening new production facilities and scientific and technical exchange in various fields. Such cooperation is mutually beneficial and fully corresponds to the motto of the Forum “Trust and Cooperation”, — said Talia Minullina, Secretary of the Republican Organising Committee for the preparation and holding of the annual International Economic Forum “Russia – Islamic World: KazanForum”, Head of the Investment Development Agency of the Republic of Tatarstan.