TIANJIN, China (AFP) — Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin took turns Monday to swipe at the West during a gathering of Eurasian leaders for a showpiece summit aimed at putting Beijing front and center of regional relations.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), comprising China, India, Russia, Pakistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus, is touted as a non-Western style of collaboration and seeks to be an alternative to traditional alliances.

Xi told the SCO leaders, including Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that the global international situation was becoming more “chaotic and intertwined.”

The Chinese leader also slammed “bullying behavior” from certain countries — a veiled reference to the United States.

“The security and development tasks facing member states have become even more challenging,” he added in his address in the northern port city of Tianjin.

“Looking to the future, with the world undergoing turbulence and transformation, we must continue to follow the Shanghai spirit... and better perform the functions of the organization,” Xi said.

Putin used his speech to defend Russia’s Ukraine offensive, blaming the West for triggering the three-and-a-half year conflict that has killed tens of thousands and devastated much of eastern Ukraine.

“This crisis wasn’t triggered by Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but was a result of a coup in Ukraine, which was supported and provoked by the West,” Putin said.

“The second reason for the crisis is the West’s constant attempts to drag Ukraine into NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization).”

Earlier, leaders from the 10 SCO countries stood on a red carpet and posed for a group photo.

Xi, Putin and Modi were seen on live footage chatting, the three leaders flanked by their translators.

Modi and Putin, who were photographed holding hands, held talks in the afternoon.

Russian state media reported the pair spent nearly an hour talking “face-to-face” in Putin’s armored presidential car before the start of their official bilateral meeting.

“Conversations with him are always insightful,” Modi wrote on X along with a photograph of them travelling in the car.

In opening comments before their meeting, Modi praised the “special and privileged strategic partnership” with Moscow.

“India and Russia have stood shoulder to shoulder, even in the toughest situations,” he said. “Our close cooperation not just important for our people but for global peace, stability and prosperity is very important.”