China will roll out the red carpet for more than two dozen world leaders at two major, defense-related events in the coming week, including the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The group was established by China and Russia in 2001 with a focus on security in Central Asia and the wider region.

World leaders will start pouring in for the SCO summit, to be held on Sunday and Monday in the port city of Tianjin, just southeast of Beijing.

Then on Wednesday, there will be a massive military parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender at the end of World War II.

The parade is set to showcase some of China’s most advanced homegrown weapons, including more than 100 aircraft, and numerous tanks and missiles.

The guest list for the SCO summit includes leaders of the organization's 10 member states, along with representatives from almost two dozen other countries, some of which may join the group at a later date.

SCO was established by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan and later expanded to include members such as India, Iran, Pakistan and Belarus.

Afghanistan and Mongolia are observer states, and 14 other countries, mostly from Southeast Asia and the Middle East, serve as “dialogue partners.” The country hosting the annual summit rotates every year.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi top the list of dignitaries attending the summit.

Also attending are Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Egyptian Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly, whose countries are “dialogue partners” within SCO.

Some countries that are not SCO members will also be represented, mostly from Southeast Asia. These include Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam, reflecting China’s desire to shore up its ties within the region.

Most of the high-level guests at the SCO forum and the military parade will overlap, but there will be some notable departures — and additions.

The leaders of India, Egypt and Turkey will leave Beijing before the military show.

Egypt will be represented by a lower-level official.

Like most Western countries and their allies, India and Turkey generally refrain from posing alongside China’s top leaders at military parades, which take place every few years.

Instead, joining Xi and Putin to observe Chinese troops marching in lockstep on Chang'an Avenue will be North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who will not have attended the earlier SCO summit.

AP video shot by Tian Macleod Ji