Delegates at a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation have adopted a joint statement calling for efforts to counter protectionism, mindful of Western tariff hikes on Chinese products such as electric vehicles.
Representatives from 10 countries in the China and Russia-led framework met on Tuesday and Wednesday in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
Attendees included Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
Their statement says it is “important to continue joint efforts to counter protectionist trade measures that are contrary to WTO rules and regulations.”
It adds that “unilateral application of sanctions is incompatible with the principles of international law.”
Jaishankar is the first Indian foreign minister to visit Pakistan in nine years. But no bilateral meeting occurred between India and Pakistan.
The Pakistani government put Islamabad under virtual lockdown for three days from Monday, in the wake of a terrorist bomb attack in Karachi on October 6 that killed two Chinese nationals.
Business activities were ordered suspended, and troops were deployed in the capital.