The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has been successful both regionally and globally in spite of a complex international environment, Russian experts have said.[Special coverage]
"The SCO has established itself as one of the most influential subjects of the modern system of international relations in conditions of geopolitical turbulence," Anatoly Smirnov, president of the National Institute for Research of Global Security, told Xinhua ahead of the upcoming SCO summit to be held in Uzbekistan's capital city of Tashkent.
The SCO has set an example by adequately responding to, as well as settling crisis situations politically and diplomatically within the framework of international law, said the expert.
Its success, Smirnov said, is largely determined by the "Shanghai Spirit," which "embodies mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, mutual consultations, as well as respect for cultural diversity and a desire for common development."
Upholding regional security is one of the responsibilities that the SCO shoulders. Smirnov expected the forthcoming SCO summit in Tashkent will focus on the development and implementation of joint measures for fighting terrorism, separatism and extremism in all their manifestations.
The struggle against illicit drug production and trafficking, transnational organized crime, crimes involving the use of modern information technologies, as well as illegal migration and human trafficking will also be among the most important issues to be discussed, Smirnov said.
"The SCO has a fine-tuned mechanism to deal with these issues," he added.
This year marks the 15th anniversary of the SCO's establishment. Founded in 2001, the SCO now has China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as its full members.
The SCO has proved its efficiency and relevance in its 15 years of existence, helping each member to become stronger in all respects, Grigory Trofimchuk, chairman of the Advisory Board of the Workshop of Eurasian Ideas Research Support Foundation, told Xinhua.
The broad integration between the SCO members is most clearly manifested in the cooperation between commercial companies, particularly small- and medium-sized businesses, said Trofimchuk.
"The SCO has heralded a cooperative trend ... Now people are talking about the alignment of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union and the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative," he said.
However, Trofimchuk noted that a lack of coordination of national legislation has somewhat impeded the integration process, an area he said needs to be improved to further boost the exchange of goods and cargo, as well as the migration of labor resources.
The SCO remains as one of the pillars of Eurasian integration and therefore it has to formulate "concise, clear and simple principles," said Trofimchuk.
