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Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, from August 30 to September 3, and will pay state visits to Kyrgyzstan and Egypt at the invitation of Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, respectively. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian announced the itinerary at a regular press briefing on August 26, outlining the overall considerations and main schedule of the trip. The visit combines a major multilateral summit with two state visits, marking another significant diplomatic undertaking for Xi this year and an important opportunity for China to deepen ties with countries in Central Asia and the Middle East.

The SCO Heads of State Council summit is scheduled for September 1 in Bishkek, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the organisation's founding, and the gathering is being seen as one of the larger multilateral gatherings in the bloc's history. Multiple reports indicate that more than a dozen heads of state and government are expected to converge on Bishkek. Besides Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian are all set to attend, along with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. The summit's plenary session will be chaired by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov.

During the visit, Xi will hold in-depth exchanges with fellow leaders on deepening SCO cooperation across all fields under new circumstances, as well as on major international and regional issues of shared concern. Reports indicate the summit is expected to focus on security, trade and economic ties, connectivity, energy and digital cooperation, while flashpoints such as the situation in the Middle East, the conflict in Ukraine and instability in Afghanistan may also feature prominently in leaders' sideline discussions. Analysts note that amid intensifying geopolitical competition and a profoundly shifting global economic landscape, the SCO is also weighing reforms aimed at strengthening Eurasian security cooperation, advancing economic integration and improving internal institutional coordination. The summit is expected to see the signing of a Bishkek Declaration marking the 25th anniversary, along with a number of other documents. In addition, according to earlier related meetings, SCO member states have reached political consensus on establishing an SCO Development Bank and have been pushing to expand the use of national currencies in bilateral trade settlement among member states in order to reduce reliance on external financial systems, while this summit may also discuss unifying the current separate "observer state" and "dialogue partner" categories into a single "SCO partner" status, along with security cooperation mechanisms such as a proposed SCO Anti-Drug Center — reflecting the organisation's ongoing efforts toward economic integration and institutional development.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation was founded in June 2001 by six countries — China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan — in Shanghai. India and Pakistan later joined in 2017, followed by Iran in 2023 and Belarus in 2024, bringing the bloc to ten full member states today and making it one of the largest comprehensive intergovernmental organisations in Eurasia, with cooperation spanning security, economic and people-to-people fields. Over the past 25 years, the organisation has expanded from a mechanism originally focused mainly on regional security issues into one covering trade and economic exchange, transport connectivity and broad cultural exchange, playing an increasingly important coordinating role in Eurasia's multilateral cooperation landscape. This year's Bishkek summit falls precisely at that milestone moment.

Alongside attending the summit, Xi will also pay a state visit to Kyrgyzstan, marking the third time he has visited the Central Asian neighbour since taking office as president, following earlier visits in 2013 and 2019 — a gap of seven years since his last trip there. Ahead of departure, Xi published a signed article in mainstream Kyrgyz media reflecting on the two countries' longstanding friendship. Specific arrangements and outcomes of China-Kyrgyzstan bilateral cooperation during this visit are expected to be announced progressively as the trip unfolds.

After concluding his trip to Kyrgyzstan, Xi will travel on to Egypt for a state visit — his first trip there in a decade — coinciding with the 70th anniversary of China-Egypt diplomatic relations. Egypt was the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China, with the two countries establishing relations in 1956; in 2014, during a state visit by Xi to Egypt, the two nations elevated their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership. During this visit, Xi will hold in-depth exchanges with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on bilateral relations and communicate on international and regional issues of mutual interest. Egypt is a significant partner for China's Belt and Road Initiative in the Middle East; according to official Egyptian data, bilateral trade between China and Egypt reached about $20.8 billion in 2025, up from $17.38 billion in 2024. Defence-related exchanges between the two countries have also advanced recently: on August 22, the Chinese and Egyptian militaries launched the "Eagles of Civilization 2026" joint air exercise in Egypt, covering air-combat planning and command training, with reports saying China deployed several J-16 fighter jets that flew more than 6,000 kilometres over roughly nine hours to take part. The two countries have also maintained longstanding industrial and investment cooperation on projects such as the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone, regarded as one of the flagship projects of their joint Belt and Road cooperation.

Observers say Xi's trip spanning Central Asia and the Middle East is not only a major commemoration of the SCO's 25th anniversary but also reflects China's sustained commitment to safeguarding regional security, advancing economic integration and expanding its global network of partnerships. The Egypt leg marks Xi's first visit there during his presidency and coincides with the milestone 70th anniversary of China-Egypt diplomatic relations, lending it particular symbolic significance. At the same time, the Bishkek summit marks the end of Kyrgyzstan's rotating SCO chairmanship, with the role passing to Pakistan, which will host the 2027 SCO summit.

Analysts note that amid intensifying geopolitical competition and a profoundly shifting global economic landscape, the SCO's coordinating role in energy, counter-terrorism, connectivity and trade is drawing close attention, while Xi's visit to Egypt is seen as another important step for China in deepening ties with Middle Eastern and African countries and expanding the scope of Belt and Road cooperation. Spanning five days in total, the trip closely combines SCO multilateral diplomacy with bilateral diplomacy toward Kyrgyzstan and Egypt, and is expected to inject fresh momentum into China's diplomatic positioning across Eurasia and the Middle East.