e-magazine
A Chance to Renovate
After three decades of dramatic growth, China's economy needs a breather to refuel
Current Issue
· Table of Contents
· Editor's Desk
· Previous Issues
· Subscribe to Mag
Subscribe Now >>
Expert's View
World
Nation
Business
Finance
Market Watch
Legal-Ease
North American Report
Forum
Government Documents
Expat's Eye
Health
Science/Technology
Lifestyle
Books
Movies
Backgrounders
Special
Photo Gallery
Blogs
Reader's Service
Learning with
'Beijing Review'
E-mail us
RSS Feeds
PDF Edition
Web-magazine
Reader's Letters
Make Beijing Review your homepage
Hot Links

cheap eyeglasses
Market Avenue
eBeijing

World
World
UPDATED: September 22, 2013 NO. 39 SEPTEMBER 26, 2013
The Shanghai Spirit
SCO leaders agree to strengthen cooperation in more areas to cope with new challenges
By Ding Ying
Share

The pragmatic cooperation among SCO members is currently on a fast track, with heavy emphasis on economic and security-related issues. In the past decade, the SCO has made remarkable achievements in fostering regional economic ties. With a growing trade volume and new initiatives in the works, member states also witnessed the creation of the Entrepreneurs Committee and the Inter-Bank Association as well as a batch of infrastructure projects in energy, traffic and telecom fields.

Zhang Ning, another CASS researcher, said that with infrastructural facilities such as transportation, power grids and pipelines being completed with concerted efforts in the bloc, member states' foundation of collective efforts is becoming more solid, providing a growing number of bigger opportunities for future cooperation, said Zhang.

Zhang pointed out that SCO members are all faced with the common bottleneck of slowing economic growth and increasing inflation and unemployment pressures. "Jointly maintaining stability of the macro economy, ensuring steady improvement of livelihoods and decreasing the impact of external risks have been current challenges of the SCO's regional economic cooperation. SCO members should strengthen cooperation in financial and investment areas to manage future risks," Zhang suggested.

Chinese President Xi proposed boosting economic cooperation to build the Silk Road economic belt, which was welcomed by other SCO leaders during the summit. Li Wei, a researcher with Chinese Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, believed that creating a safe and stable security environment is the precondition of realizing common regional growth and prosperity. At the same time, economic expansion and social prosperity will also help address the root of security problems, said Li.

Zhang Xinfeng, Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO's Regional Anti-Terrorism Agency, said that the "three evil forces" (of terrorism, separatism and extremism) tend to propagate religious extremism and recruit more followers via the Internet and are highly interconnected with drug trafficking, weapons smuggling and organized crime. He said that the organization will strengthen its ability in processing information and coordinating cybersecurity agencies of member states to fight against these enemies.

Li pointed out that the new security threat facing the region is a combination of the "three evil forces" and drug trafficking. These forces now tend to manufacture, traffic and sell drugs from Afghanistan in order to obtain money to support their terrorist activities, said Li, proposing that SCO members strengthen cooperation in intelligence and law enforcement to deal with these illicit activities to protect regional security.

Email us at: dingying@bjreview.com

Main Points of the Bishkek Declaration

The six presidents of the SCO countries of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, signed a joint declaration in Bishkek on September 13, stating the bloc's stance on key issues:

- Stressing that international and regional disputes should be peacefully resolved through political and diplomatic means under the principles of equality, respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-interference in others' internal affairs and no use or threat of use of force;

- Reaffirming the dominant role of the United Nations in international affairs. Related countries should work out a package of solutions over the reform of the UN Security Council, which takes into consideration each other's interests and concerns;

- Improving the legal basis of SCO cooperation in fighting international terrorism, separatism, extremism and organized cross-border crimes;

- Emphasizing that the Middle East should achieve peace, stability, prosperity and progress without external interference, especially the interference of force unauthorized by the UN Security Council. Under the condition of respecting Syria's sovereignty, SCO countries support the Syrian people to solve the crisis as soon as possible by halting violence in the country and launching unconditional and extensive political dialogue between the Syrian Government and the opposition on the basis of the Geneva Communique issued on June 30, 2012.

- Calling for an international conference to lay a foundation for Syria's reconciliation, normalization and international participation, and supporting for putting chemical weapons under the supervision of the international community and destroying them step by step, and suggesting Syria join the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction.

- Boosting cooperation under the SCO framework, and lifting cooperation to a new level so as to turn the region into a harmonious one of lasting peace, friendliness and prosperity.

(Source: Xinhua News Agency)

   Previous   1   2  



 
Top Story
-Embracing Innovation
-Special Coverage: Global Expansion Continues
-Special Coverage: An Eco-Friendly Shift
-Special Coverage: Recycling Economy
-Special Coverage: China's Shipbuilding Industry
Related Stories
-President Xi Jinping's Visit to Central Asia to include G20 and SCO Summits
 
Most Popular
在线翻译
About BEIJINGREVIEW | About beijingreview.com | Rss Feeds | Contact us | Advertising | Subscribe & Service | Make Beijing Review your homepage
Copyright Beijing Review All right reserved