They have also signed a number of agreements, including the budget for 2010 fiscal year. Premier Wen Jiabao chaired this year’s one-day meeting. Attending were his counterparts from Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, as well as representatives from the SCO observer nations and Afghanistan.

The focus was on deepening economic and cultural cooperation amid international and regional challenges. The participants reviewed progress in the area since meeting last year in the Kazakh capital Astana.