SCO stresses urgency to forge new type of int'l relations, vision of common development

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has reaffirmed its commitment to protecting regional security and achieving common development.

In a joint communique issued after the 20th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of SCO Member States on Thursday, the SCO delegation heads underscored the urgency to advocate building of a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice and win-win cooperation, and forging a common vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.

During the video conference, the delegation heads pointed out that the SCO has made important contributions to ensuring regional security, promoting global economic development and enhancing social, cultural and scientific exchanges among regional countries.

The SCO member states will further promote policy coordination, security cooperation, unimpeded trade, financial integration and closer people-to-people bonds in a joint effort to build a peaceful, secure, prosperous and clean world, they noted.

More work is needed to bolster SCO multilateral economic and trade cooperation, and the bloc plans to strengthen cooperation in finance, trade, investment, industry, transportation, energy, agriculture and the digital economy.

The SCO member states consider it important to further improve the global economic governance system and will continue to consolidate an open, transparent, just, inclusive and non-discriminatory multilateral trading system based on the principles and rules of the World Trade Organization, they reaffirmed.

The SCO supports member states in enhancing cooperation in industry and investment in order to promote all-round development of the SCO region, they noted.

They also noticed that innovative technologies are playing an increasingly important role in promoting sustainable economic development and digital transformation in the region.

The heads of SCO delegations opposed stigmatization associated with COVID-19 and stressed the need to further strengthen international cooperation against the pandemic, including deepening cooperation with the World Health Organization and other international organizations to overcome the economic and social impact of the pandemic on the world.

There should be more importance attached to ecological issues and their negative impact on the economic and social development of SCO member states as well as more support to strengthen SCO regional cooperation on ecological and environmental protection, they noted.

They also spoke highly of the achievements of people-to-people cooperation and voiced support for stronger multilateral cooperation in this regard.