President congratulates Belarus on SCO status

Editor's note: President Xi Jinping held three respective meetings on Thursday with world leaders on the sidelines of the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The following are highlights of Xi's talk with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

President Xi Jinping congratulated Belarus on becoming a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, during his meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Xi recalled Lukashenko's two visits to China last year, saying that they had outlined a new blueprint for the development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

He said that since the beginning of this year, there have been close exchanges at all levels between China and Belarus, and the consensuses they reached have been effectively implemented.

With the joint efforts of both sides, the relationship between China and Belarus will continue to develop healthily and make great strides forward, Xi said.

Lukashenko expressed his gratitude for China's support for Belarus's formal accession to the SCO, and congratulated China on assuming the rotating chair of the regional organization.

He said that the performance of the guard of honor of the People's Liberation Army in Belarus on Wednesday was warmly welcomed, once again showcasing the friendship between Belarus and China.

Belarus supports the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, all proposed by Xi, as well as the six-point consensus on the political resolution of the Ukraine crisis, jointly proposed by China and Brazil, he said.

Lukashenko added that he looks forward to further enhancing bilateral and multilateral cooperation and coordination between Belarus and China.