Iran’s president arrives in Bishkek to attend SCO summit

Rouhani was welcomed by Kyrgyz Prime Minister Prime Minister Zhantoro Satybaldiyev upon arrival in the capital on Thursday.

Upon leaving Tehran for Bishkek, Rouhani told reporters at Mehrabad International Airport that the visit came at the official invitation of the SCO Council of Heads of State and his Kyrgyz counterpart Almazbek Atambaev.

“In the Shanghai [Cooperation Organization] summit, the stances of the Islamic Republic of Iran on key international and regional issues will be explained,” he added.

The event is significant given the sensitive situation in the region, said the president, adding, Russia and China, as two SCO members, can play a significant role in regional and international issues as two permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The Iranian president’s visit to Kyrgyzstan is his first foreign trip since taking office on August 4.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Minister of Industry, Mining and Trade Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh and the president’s chief of staff Mohammad Nahavandian accompany Rouhani during his two-day trip to the Central Asian country.

In addition to attending the summit, Rouhani is to sit down with a number of the participants, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, for talks on issues of mutual interest.

The SCO is an intergovernmental security organization, founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Iran, India, Mongolia, and Pakistan are observer members of the organization.