President Xi Jinping on Thursday met regional leaders in Uzbekistan ahead of the start of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.

In his meeting with his Tajik counterpart, Emomali Rahmon, Xi said China and Tajikistan need to continue to provide solid support for each other and bring about more concrete results in bilateral ties.

In talks with the president of Turkmenistan, Serdar Berdimuhamedov, Xi said China hopes to push forward bilateral ties.

According to Xinhua News Agency, Xi stressed the need for the two countries to boost natural gas cooperation and step up cooperation in non-resource fields.

Berdimuhamedov said Turkmenistan firmly supports the one-China principle and firmly supports China in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Xi also met with the president of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Xi was due to hold talks with other leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.