Later in the day, Lavrov is expected to hold bilateral meetings with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, and Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
On Friday, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the SCO foreign ministers will make preparations for the meeting of the SCO Heads of State Council, scheduled to be held from July 3-4 in India's capital New Delhi. In this regard, the top diplomats will discuss the content of the upcoming event, consider drafts of relevant documents and decisions, and exchange views on the international and regional agenda.
The key topic of the SCO ministerial meeting will be the expansion of the organization. The ministers will approve the draft decision of the SCO leaders' meeting on granting Iran the status of a member state and discuss the application of Belarus for a possible acceleration of its accession to the organization.
On the sidelines of the meeting, the ministers are expected to sign memorandums granting the status of SCO dialogue partners to Bahrain, Kuwait, Myanmar, the Maldives, and the United Arab Emirates.
Special attention will be given to the coordination of foreign policies in order to strengthen the central coordinating role of the United Nations in ensuring reliable global security and sustainable economic development.