The context of how Beijing sees its place in the evolving international system was conveyed in a subtle but unambiguous manner in Tianjin.
The two-day Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit that concluded in Tianjin on September 1 was a significant diplomatic triumph for President Xi Jinping and Beijing. The forum sought to burnish China’s geopolitical profile as a reliable interlocutor and an alternative voice for stability in global governance.
SCO summits tend to be low-key and do not garner much notice. This time, though, China used the opportunity to signal it had arrived at the global high table at a time when US credibility and reliability are in tatters thanks to the mercurial and petulant US President Donald Trump disrupting long-established international policy and diplomatic norms.
