The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has become one of the main multilateral actors in the Eurasian region over the past quarter-century, thanks to its core principle of the Shanghai Spirit, a senior SCO official has said.
Ahmad Saidmurodzoda, deputy secretary-general of the SCO, said in an exclusive interview with the China Media Group (CMG) that the organization has never been directed against any party, and that all its decisions are reached through consensus among member states.
"Today, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has become one of the main multilateral actors in the Eurasian region. The SCO is bearing its responsibility in the region with distinction for a quarter of a century. I can definitely say that I personally think that this has become a reality thanks to the core principle of our organization, which is the Shanghai Spirit. From the very beginning, SCO wasn't directed against anyone. So in the organization, our member states try to avoid the ideological approach to resolving the different issues. All the decisions are the result of the unification or crystallization of all the views of all 10 member states," he said.
"The SCO's experience shows that countries, all 10 countries with different political systems, ideological approach, religious background, they can meet the functioning of the SCO, which can be called the functioning of an international organization of a new type based on its core principle, which is, in our case, the Shanghai Spirit," he added.
Starting with cross-border confidence-building, the SCO has since expanded not only in membership but also in the scope of its cooperation across multiple fronts. The deputy secretary-general explained the regional and international consensus that has driven this transformation.
"Initially, SCO was established with a specific focus on security issues, primarily on borders and confidence-building. I can say that that was the natural reflection of the realities of those times. And the organization was established in 2001 in Shanghai, and it became clear that security and other dimensions of the challenges and threats should be viewed from the broader perspective," he said.
"I will emphasize the culture, environmental, transport sectors. For instance in transport, we have achieved a certain result during this quarter of the century. The most effective one and the most successful one is the intergovernmental agreement on the creation of favorable conditions for road transport, which was signed in 2014, more than 10 years ago. And we hope that this agreement will soon be implemented fully and new member states, as India, Pakistan, Iran, and Belarus, they propose their own roads to be incorporated into this very serious intergovernmental agreement on transport," said Saidmurodzoda.
Asked about his expectations for the SCO summit to be opened Monday in Bishkek, Saidmurodzoda said he was confident the gathering would "play a pivotal role" in strengthening and developing the organization.
"This year, the SCO member states, with the proposal of Kyrgyzstan, have decided to devote the theme of the SCO Plus meeting to the process of the reform of the United Nations. And we in the sector have no doubts that, like in previous years, the summit in Bishkek will be another very important step forward to the development of our organization," he said.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of the SCO. Under the theme "25 Years of the SCO: Together Towards Sustainable Peace, Development, and Prosperity", this year's SCO Summit is expected to bring together leaders from more than 20 countries in the Kyrgyz capital.
SCO’s 25-year growth in Eurasia rooted in Shanghai Spirit: official
