VLADIVOSTOK, September 13. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is scheduled to attend a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on September 20-21, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during a briefing on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF).

"I would like to say that on the sidelines of the General Assembly, on September 20-21, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is attending an extra meeting between foreign ministers of the SCO member states on top of the traditional, informal ministerial meeting within the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, called CICA," Zakharova said.

The diplomat specified that the SCO meeting is expected to "focus on comprehensive enhancement of the organization and prospects for deeper interaction with the United Nations." The diplomat indicated that Iran, which became the ninth SCO member in July, will attend the meeting for the first time.

Touching upon the CICA agenda, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said that it "will focus on the implementation of decisions made during last year’s summit in Astana to step up the efficiency of the forum’s work, systematize the current areas of cooperation and identify new ones within the framework of the meeting." Thus, it is expected that the Russia-initiated statement on expanding volunteer work will be approved.