The meeting was inaugurated in China’s southern province of Hainan earlier on Saturday in the presence of culture ministers from 10 countries, including the six SCO Member States; China, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Uzbekistan and the four Observer States; Iran, India, Pakistan and Mongolia.

The summit is being held with the aim of boosting trade and cultural cooperation, plus facilitating cultural exchanges among the participants in preparation of expansion of ties in other fields.

The Iranian Minister of Culture, Mohammad Hosseini, who is representing Iran, is set to meet with his Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of the summit over the expansion of cultural relations between the two ancient nations.

The SCO culture ministers’ meeting is held each year in one of the member states on a rotating basis. The very first meeting was held in Beijing in 2002.