China names special envoy to strengthen ties with SCO nations

China has appointed a special representative to "deepen" ties with member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the foreign ministry announced on Wednesday.

“The special representative is an important post China set up to deepen exchanges and cooperation with the SCO countries,” foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters.

Ambassador Yan Wenbin was appointed special representative on SCO affairs as well as the SCO national coordinator, she said.

“We believe he will actively fulfil his duties and maintain close working relations with the national coordinators of other SCO member states to deliver on the common understandings of the leaders, work for development and cooperation of the organisation, jointly contribute to regional security, stability, development and prosperity and promote building of an even closer SCO community,” said Mao.

The SCO traces its roots to the Shanghai Five mechanism, comprising China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, before Uzbekistan joined as a sixth member and was later joined by Pakistan, India, Iran, and Belarus.

Besides 10 member states, it has 16 SCO Partners, identified as observer and dialogue partners, in Asia, Europe, and Africa.

The SCO covers about 24 percent of the world’s land area and 42 percent of the global population. Member states account for roughly one-quarter of global GDP, with trade increasing nearly 100-fold in the last two decades. Their share of world trade rose from 5.4 percent in 2001 to 17.5 percent in 2020.

The 25th summit of the SCO was hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping in the northern city of Tianjin, where the bloc adopted a 10-year SCO Development Strategy to 2035, alongside outcome documents on security, trade, energy and cultural cooperation.

China’s trade with SCO members, observers and dialogue partners reached a record $890 billion in 2024, or 14.4 percent of its total foreign trade.