Foreign ministry officials from six member-states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) are meeting in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe.
Tajik President Emomali Rahmon greeted the participants from China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan on July 31, saying the SCO grouping still has "unused potential" in achieving its aims to provide cooperation, security and stability in the region.
Delegates discussed joint efforts against terrorism, separatism and illegal drug trafficking. The situation in Afghanistan, which has earlier expressed its intention to join the group, was also discussed.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that participants at an SCO summit scheduled for September 11-12 in Dushanbe, the ongoing crisis in Ukraine will be discussed, among other issues.