The Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs considers issues related to the Organisation’s current activities, prepares meetings of the Council of Heads of State, and conducts consultations within the Organisation on international issues. Where necessary, the Council may issue statements on behalf of the SCO.
As a rule, the Council meets one month prior to a session of the Council of Heads of State.
Extraordinary meetings of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs may be convened at the initiative of no fewer than two Member States and with the consent of the foreign ministers of all other Member States. In September 2023, at the initiative of Kazakhstan, which at that time held the SCO Chairmanship, an extraordinary meeting of the Council was held on the sidelines of the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
The Chair of the Council is the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Member State holding the SCO Chairmanship at the given time and hosting the forthcoming regular meeting of the Council of Heads of State.
In conducting external contacts, the Chair of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs represents the Organisation in accordance with the Rules of Procedure of the Council.
In 2025, the regular meeting of the SCO Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs was held in Tianjin on 15 July under the chairmanship of China.