BEIJING: Chinese leader Xi Jinping left Tuesday for state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan, during which he will attend a meeting of Shanghai alliance nations in the Kazakh capital Astana, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Chinese President Xi Jinping left Beijing on Tuesday morning for the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Astana, and state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan at the invitation of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of the Republic of Kazakhstan and President Emomali Rahmon of the Republic of Tajikistan," state news agency Xinhua said.

The nine-member SCO, which encompasses a vast stretch of the globe from Moscow to Beijing, includes around half the world's population.

Its permanent members are this year's hosts Kazakhstan, India, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and, as of last year, Iran.

This year, Belarus is expected to join after being told at 2023's SCO summit, hosted virtually by India, that it would become a member.

Xinhua reported that Xi's entourage includes Cai Qi, a top-ranking member of the Chinese Communist Party, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

 -AFP