Putin praises SCO as global force, criticizes Germany at summit

At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in early September 2026, Russian President Vladimir Putin called the bloc one of the world's most powerful regional structures, representing half of the global population. He highlighted strong humanitarian ties among member states and stressed that no country imposes its will on others within the group, while naming the expansion of trade between SCO members as a key priority.

Putin also used the summit platform to condemn Germany's sanctions against Russia, a position echoed by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who accused Berlin of pursuing escalation. On the sidelines of the event, Putin held informal talks with Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to media reports.