Vladimir Putin, Xi to participate in virtual SCO summit hosted by PM Modi

New Delhi: Leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) on Tuesday will hold an online summit hosted by India seeking to expand the influence of the Eurasian group by including Iran and opening a path to membership for Belarus. China's President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin will participate in the virtual summit, which will be Putin's first appearance at an international event since he crushed a mutiny by the Wagner mercenary group in late June. Formed in 2001 by China and Russia, with former Soviet central Asian states as members and joined later by India and Pakistan, the…