TERROR, TRADE, GROWTH FIGURE IN SCO SUMMIT

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Putin thanks SCO states for support during Wagner revolt

MOSCOW

PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the Russian people were “united as never before,” as he sought to project confidence in the wake of a short-lived revolt, at the 23rd meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS) presided by PM Narendra Modi in a virtual format where he can find a sympathetic audience.

The SCO meeting was Putin’s first multilateral summit since an armed rebellion rattled Russia.

Speaking by video link from the Kremlin, Putin praised the organisation for “playing an increasingly significant role in international affairs, making a real contribution to maintaining peace and stability, ensuring sustainable economic growth of the participating states, and strengthening ties between peoples.”

He thanked the member states for supporting Russian authorities during the short-lived armed mutiny mounted by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, and said the West had turned Ukraine into “a virtually hostile state—anti-Russia.” Putin has frequently lashed out at the West for its support of Ukraine in the war.

The summit presents an opportunity for Putin to show that he’s in control after an insurrection that left some wondering about divisions among Russian elites.

“The Russian people are united as never before,” he said. “The solidarity and responsibility for the fate of the fatherland was clearly demonstrated by the Russian political circles and the entire society by standing as a united front against the attempted armed rebellion.”