A meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) yesterday ended in Beijing with signing of 14 documents, including a meeting resolution.
In a statement delivered at the meeting, Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Aslov on April 24 reported on Tajikistan’s position on key issues of cooperation within the framework of the Organization and prospects of further expansion of cooperation between the SCO member nations, according to the Tajik MFA information department.
Tajik minister reportedly also expressed his opinion on a number of significant international and regional issues.
Meanwhile, China’s Xinhua reports the SCO foreign ministers reached a series of consensus for the upcoming SCO Qingdao summit.
“This meeting has made political preparations for the summit and laid a solid foundation for its success,” Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who hosted the meeting, was quoted as saying.
Foreign ministers from the eight member states, namely China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, reportedly signed 14 documents, including a meeting resolution.
They also reached consensus on deepening solidarity and mutual trust, boosting security cooperation, dovetailing development strategies, increasing pragmatic cooperation, strengthening people-to-people exchanges, and expanding the international influence of the SCO.
“The Qingdao summit, with joint efforts from all sides, will be a significant meeting, setting future directions and goals for the SCO and marking a milestone in its history,” Wang said.
The summit will be the first of its kind after a membership expansion last June to include India and Pakistan.
“The fundamental reason why the SCO can keep growing is that its member states have been firmly sticking to the 'Shanghai Spirit', featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for cultural diversity and pursuit of common development,” Wang said.
He called for taking the upcoming summit as an opportunity to review the “Shanghai Spirit,” strengthen solidarity, mutual trust and all-round cooperation, and forge a closer community with a shared future.
The summit is expected to ratify a five-year outline for the implementation of the Treaty on Long-term Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation to set the direction for SCO cooperation in the next phase, and approve a host of resolutions and cooperation deals covering areas including security, economy and trade, as well as people-to-people exchanges.
Foreign ministers from other SCO member states spoke highly of the work undertaken by China as rotating presidency of the SCO, and pledged to strengthen coordination with China for a fruitful summit, according to Xinhua.
