According to IRNA Political Desk reporter, the Head of Supreme Leader’s Office Ayatollah Mahmoud Mohammadi Golpayegani saw off the IRI President at Tehran’s Mehrabad International Airport.

Accompanying Dr. Ahmadinejad during his day-long visit of Russia there is his cabinet’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Manouchehr Mottaki.

The president is going to take part at the SCO summit as an observer and is also scheduled to give a lecture there.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization was founded in the year 1991 by the leaders of the time of Russia and China.

Iran was accepted as the SCO observer member in the year 2005.

The former summit of the organization was held late last summer in Tajikistan’s capital city, Dushanbe, and President Ahmadinejad participated at it in the same capacity.

Before departing Tehran Ahmadinejad said in an interview with the reporters present at the airport, “The Shanghai Organization is a regional treaty pursuing security and economic cooperation issues among its members.”

He added, “During the course of the past three years the agenda of the SCO has included various issues and the member countries, too, and has gained noticeable achievements in bilateral and multilateral cooperation.”

President Ahmadinejad said, “In this conference I am participating as a special guest of the Russian President Vladimir Medvedev.”

The president added, “We enjoy good and still expanding ties with the member countries of the SCO.”

Iran, Russia and China are three major economic poles of the world participating at this conference that are playing major roles in global developments today and they are expected to govern a great part of upcoming global developments.

The president said at the end that he would hold effective talks with the heads of friend and allied countries aimed at improving the level of ties.