China's Defence Minister Dong Jun attending the Defence Ministers' Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States in Qingdao in eastern China's Shandong province on June 26, 2025. - AFP
QINGDAO, China: China hosted defence ministers from Iran and Russia for a meeting in its eastern seaside city of Qingdao on Thursday (June 26) against the backdrop of war in the Middle East and a summit of Nato countries in Europe that agreed to boost military spending.
Beijing has long sought to present the 10-member Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a counterweight to Western-led power blocs and has pushed to strengthen collaboration between its member countries in politics, security, trade and science.
