Iran's president joins Asian leaders at Shanghai security summit

CHINA: Leaders opened an Asian security summit on Thursday under scrutiny for signs that the group's embrace of Iran's fiery president will signal a shift toward an outwardly anti-Western stance.

The presidents of China, Russia and four Central Asian nations - the core members of the grouping known as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization - held a closed-door meeting.

They were later to hold an enlarged session with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the leaders and representatives of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Mongolia. Iran is attending as an observer to the SCO, a decade-old grouping originally established to settle border disputes, but which has slowly broadened its reach into counterterrorism, defense, energy and economic cooperation.

While the group says it isn't aimed at any third parties, its dominant members, China and Russia, are frequently at odds with Washington and have resisted U.S. efforts to seek tougher U.N. action in the standoff over Iran's nuclear program.

Host China has said the Iranian nuclear issue won't be on the agenda for the formal summit, which is to focus on expanding the SCO's role in regional security, trade, and cultural exchanges.

However, the issue is expected to arise in separate meetings on the forum's fringes between Ahmadinejad and Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Ahmadinejad hasn't commented on the nuclear issue since his arrival. Iran's foreign minister on Wednesday said his country wants to resolve the standoff, and described as "a step forward" an offer of incentives designed to persuade Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment.

Analysts say a warm reception for Ahmadinejad would strengthen perceptions of the organization as a new challenge to Washington's interests, particularly in light of the grouping's efforts to strengthen its influence over regional security and economic ties.

Russia and China deny Iran's presence indicates a hidden agenda for the summit and portray the SCO as a neutral force focused on security and trade. The group is to hold its largest-ever joint military exercises on Russian soil next year.

Shanghai, Thursday, AP