Events

31 Aug 2025

Lukashenko holds over dozen informal meetings with foreign leaders at SCO summit

MINSK, 31 August (BelTA) – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko took part in a gala reception for the heads of delegations during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, BelTA has learned.

The ongoing SCO summit in Tianjin (31 August – 1 September) is the largest in the organization’s history, with invitations extended to over 30 national leaders and heads of international organizations. This provides a pivotal opportunity not only to address the official agenda but also to conduct meetings and negotiations on the sidelines.

The Belarusian head of state has already engaged in over a dozen such meetings during this summit, and further official and sideline discussions are anticipated. After all, the summit’s main day is still ahead. That said, it is often within informal settings that agreements on critical matters are reached, solidifying this format as an essential diplomatic tool.

A reminder, on the morning of 31 August, Aleksandr Lukashenko held talks with President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping. As the host of the summit Xi Jinping, flanked by his wife Peng Liyuan, greeted the Belarusian leader before the reception.

Cameras captured the warm, friendly greetings that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan exchanged with the Belarusian president during a joint photo ceremony. The cordial atmosphere continued on the sidelines, where another warm meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi took place.

A series of photos from the summit’s sidelines, published by the Pul Pervogo Telegram channel, depict Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko engaged in discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, as well as in a direct bilateral conversation with Vladimir Putin.

Another photograph depicts Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev engaged in talks at a table. The central topic of their discussion was likely a document held by Ilham Aliyev, which the two leaders were reviewing together. The presence of a green folder on the table indicates the document was presumably retrieved from it.

Another image shows Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif engaging Aleksandr Lukashenko and Ilham Aliyev in a conversation facilitated by an interpreter. The visibly relaxed demeanor and laughter of the two presidents suggest the topic was informal. In a separate engagement, Aleksandr Lukashenko also held a bilateral discussion with Shehbaz Sharif while standing.

The photographs also documented the president’s meetings with a broad array of leaders, such as President of Mongolia Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith, and Myanmar’s leader Min Aung Hlaing.