QINGDAO, June 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun on Thursday held individual meetings in east China's Qingdao city with the secretary-general of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and his counterparts from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and India, all of whom attended the SCO Defense Ministers' Meeting.

The SCO is an important force in the practice of true multilateralism, and in safeguarding global strategic stability, Dong said.

He called for joint efforts to address the serious impacts of unilateralism, protectionism and hegemonic acts, and to inject more certainty and positive energy into regional prosperity and stability.

China stands ready to work closely with the defense departments and militaries of SCO member states to push for continuous new progress in defense and security cooperation, Dong noted.

The attendees said they are willing to enhance the level of defense and security cooperation within the SCO framework, and to promote security, stability, development and prosperity in the region and around the world. Enditem