Xi returns to Beijing after Central Asia visit

Chinese President Xi Jinping returned to Beijing on Friday after state visits to Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as attendance at G20 and SCO meetings.  [Special coverage]

Xi paid state visits to the four nations from Sept. 3 to 13 during which he attended the eighth Leaders' Summit of the Group of Twenty (G20) in St. Petersburg and the 13th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Bishkek.

The G20, established in September 1999, brings together 20 major economies of the world, including 19 countries and the European Union.

Founded in June 2001, the SCO has member states of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.