China hosts Russian, Iranian ministers

CHINA hosted defence ministers from Iran and Russia for a meeting in its eastern seaside city of Qingdao yesterday against the backdrop of war in the Middle East and a summit of Nato countries in Europe that agreed to boost military spending.

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Beijing has long sought to present the 10-member Shanghai Co-operation 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.

The Qingdao meeting of the organisation’s top defence officials comes as a fledgling ceasefire between Israel and Iran holds after 12 days of fighting between the arch-foes.

It is also being held the day after a summit of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) leaders in The Hague, where members agreed to ramp up their defence spending to satisfy US President Donald Trump.

Beijing's ties with Moscow are also in the spotlight.

China has portrayed itself as a neutral party in Russia’s war with Ukraine, although Western governments say its close ties have given Moscow crucial economic and diplomatic support.