The Shanghai Cooperation Organization does not lack applications for the entry, said Nurlan Ermekbaev, General Secretary General Secretary General of RIA Novosti in an exclusive interview. During the conversation, he told the agency about the plans and priorities of the development of the association for the coming years, and also shared information about the preparation of high -level meetings within the SCO and told what measures the organization could take to strengthen security in the region.

– Can decisions make decisions on the inclusion of new members in China at the upcoming summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)? Can new observers and dialogue partners be included in the SCO? What kind of countries can it be?

– The activities and principles of the SCO are widely in demand in the world. To date, the organization’s space occupies about a quarter of the land of the globe, the population of the SCO community countries is almost half the population of the planet, and the total GDP of the Member States is more than a quarter of the global gross product.

The SCO has become one of the centers of attraction in Eurasia, including the countries of the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia and even North Africa. Crisis phenomena observed in the world only stimulated the interest of partners in joint work in the framework of the SCO in one or another quality. This is evidenced by the results of the summites in New Delhi in 2023 and in Astana in 2024, during which decisions were made to join the organization of Iran and Belarus as full-fledged member states-thus, their number increased to 10. The SCO community also includes two observers and 14 partners in dialogue.

It should be emphasized that for almost a quarter of a century from the moment the SCO has developed exclusively on the basis of the principle of openness to the outside world. Our organization will continue to follow the guideline of the member of the Member States, to translate ties with those partners who share the goals and objectives of the SCO, who have included in the political vocabulary as a “Shanghai spirit”, namely: mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultations, respect for the diversity of cultures and the desire for joint development. In our organization, no one will command anyone, to impose a confrontation system of coordinates, socio-political standards and models, alien to someone else’s cultural and civilizational tradition.

Currently it is too early to talk about specific plans to expand the organization at the upcoming meeting of the Council of Heads of State in the Chinese People’s Republic. These issues are discussed in closed mode between SCO member states. What a decision will be made – time will tell. I can only assure that our organization does not experience a shortage of applications.

At the same time expansion is not an end in itself, but a logical process of SCO development as an authoritative international structure that plays a noticeable role in solving global and regional problems.

I would like to emphasize that the member states are solidly in that it is important not quantity, but quality. Work is underway to improve the practice of interaction between the SCO community members. An example of this is the adoption of a roadmap to strengthen cooperation between member states and dialog partners.

Of course it is gratifying that an increasing number of players want to join the SCO, while we give priority to the interests of the organization itself. We are always open and ready to work with partners interested in establishing cooperation with us.

– Which of the leaders of the states confirmed their participation in the SCO summit in China this year? Who will be invited from the partner countries by dialogue and observers? Will any third countries be invited?

-China, who accepted the SCO in Astana in Astana for the fifth time, has developed a substantive action plan for 2024-2025, in accordance with which about 100 events in the areas of politics, security, economics, trade, humanitarian exchanges and institutional construction are planned.

The Tianjin summit the upcoming this fall will be the key event of the China Year. Currently, member states are actively involved in preparing for this sign event.

The nomination of proposals for the composition of the participants of the summit is the prerogative of the chairman in the SCO of the country. I can say that in practice, traditional participants in the meetings of the Council of Heads of State are Mongolia as a country-observer and Turkmenistan as a guest of the presiding state.

As you know last year at a summit in Astana a meeting was first held in the SCO Plus format, in which the leaders of a number of SCO partners in dialogue took part.

The coordination of the composition of the participants of the summit continues, and I will refrain from announcing. I am convinced that closer to the meeting of foreign ministers of the SCO member states this issue will be finally resolved. There is no doubt that the Chinese side successfully realizes its chairmanship, and the Tianjin summit will pass at the highest level, opening a new chapter in the development of the SCO.

– When will a meeting of ministers of the SCO defense ministers in China take place? What can it be devoted to?

-A meeting of the Minister of Defense of Member States operates as an SCO body in accordance with Articles 4 and 8 of the Charter of the Organization of June 7, 2002. In their activities, a charter is guided, the Regulation on meetings of the heads of ministries and/or departments of the SCO member states, an agreement on cooperation between ministries of defense and other regulatory documents. In the course of such meetings, the issues of developing relations in the military field, promoting peace, regional stability and security, strengthening trust measures, as well as coordinating the efforts of the SCO member states to counteract new challenges and threats are discussed. It is worth noting that the organization is not a military unit, within its framework the principle of collective security does not apply.

Another meeting of defense ministers is scheduled for holding this year in the summer of this summer. In the period from March 26 to March 27 a meeting of representatives of departments oversees the international military cooperation of the SCO member states was held in Tsindao. The parties exchanged views on building interaction in defense and security, and the importance of careful preparation for the upcoming ministerial event was emphasized.

– How would you appreciate the prospects for strengthening the economic component within the SCO, in particular, the creation of the SCO development bank, and create a full -fledged free trade zone within the framework of the association?

-At various sites the huge potential of the SCO cooperation in the trade and economic sphere is noted, due to the complementarity of the markets and economic structures, transit capabilities, colossal natural and human resources of member states.

Cooperation in this direction has been going on for several years. Member States implement the program of multilateral trade and economic cooperation, the SCO economic development strategy for the period until 2030, a number of other documents covering a wide range of interaction in almost all sectors of the economy. In recent years, a new impetus has received cooperation in a number of current directions, including digital economy, expanding mutual settlements in national currencies, promoting startups and innovations.

So far the potential of economic cooperation in the SCO is far from being fully realized. Much has yet to be done to build a more effective and pragmatic model of trade and economic cooperation, capable of transforming the agreements reached into specific economic projects in order to bring dividends to our countries and peoples.

In this context the most important task is to ensure synergy, efficiency and effectiveness of the work in the Arsenal of the SCO of mechanisms and cooperative platforms, including the business council, the interbank association, the association of investors and others.

Currently the SCO does not aim to economic integration in its classical sense, including by creating a full -fledged free trade zone. At the same time, one of the fundamental goals of the organization is the creation of conditions for a gradual transition to the free movement of goods, capital and services. In this regard, in the current realities it is seen more promising to focus the organization’s efforts on simplifying trade and customs procedures, stimulating electronic commerce and transport interconnectedness, forming favorable regimes for joint investment activities, business contacts and tourist flows.

Among the member states and the expert community, there is an opinion that one of the restraining factors in the development of practical cooperation is the absence in the SCO of their own mechanisms for financing project activities. Indeed, the issue of creating a development bank, fund or other financial institution in the SCOs capable of satisfying the growing demand for investment and financing has been discussed for a long time. This is a time -consuming process that requires close political coordination and planning, careful development of the legal framework and the regulation system, accounting for the needs of the parties and the development of the situation in global financial markets. So far, I can only state optimism with a certain degree of optimism that during the period of the current chairmanship of China in our organization, experts of member states significantly activated negotiations on the development of a mutual acceptable formula.

-How do you assess the prospects for deepening the foreign policy coordination of the SCO member states and joint strengthening of regional security in the context of the growth of global instability?

– Currently serious changes are taking place in world politics, economics and other areas of international relations. A fairer multipolar world order is being formed; opportunities for the development of states, the implementation of mutually beneficial and equal international cooperation are expanding. At the same time, we have to state that the use of power methods is intensified, the norms of international law are systematically violated, geopolitical confrontation and conflicts are growing, risks are multiplying for stability not only in the SCO space, but also in the world as a whole.

Looking around the formation and development of the organization, I emphasize that the desire to maintain peace, security and stability has always been and remains one of the main points of contact of the SCO member states and the priority direction of their cooperation.

After 24 years from the date of creation the SCO became one of the most important participants in the modern system of international relations, and its role in the formation of conditions for strengthening the universal world, security and stability, as well as building a new democratic, fair, political and economic world order is invariably increasing. We advocate the respect of the rights of peoples to an independent and democratic choice of ways of our political and socio-economic development and we believe that the principles of mutual respect for the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity of states, equality, mutual benefit, non-interference in internal affairs, non-use of strength or threat of power are the basis of sustainable development of international relations.

We are committed to the peaceful settlement of disagreements and disputes between countries through dialogue and consultations; we oppose confrontation approaches to solving the problems of international and regional development.

SCO member-states relying on the proximity or coincidence of the assessments of the current regional and international agenda and guided by the principles of the SCO and the “Shanghai spirit”, steadily increase cooperation in various fields, thereby contributing to the cause of peace and development both in the region and beyond.

At present we are working on the adaptation of the organization’s activities to modern realities, including through the improvement of the SCO mechanisms to counteract the challenges and threats of security, expanding cooperation in the fight against terrorism, separatism and extremism, as well as illegal trafficking, weapons smuggling and other types of transnational organized crime. In particular, the parties are discussing the creation of a number of SCO structures to counteract the challenges and threats of security, information security, to combat international organized crime and drug heater.

We are sure that the increase in the efficiency of the SCO will contribute to the deepening of foreign policy coordination between its member states and, as a result, strengthening regional security.

-What memorable events in honor of the 80^th anniversary of the Victory in the Second World War will be held within the SCO?

-The celebration this year of the 80^th anniversary of the Victory in the Second World War and the Great Patriotic War is of great political, historical and ideological significance for the SCO. Most member states of the organization were allies in the fight against the Nazi coalition, made a decisive contribution to the defeat of the Nazi invaders and Japanese militarists. A great victory is a symbol of the courage and heroism of the peoples of our countries that defended freedom and peace.

This year in the capitals and large cities of the member states of the organization, including Moscow and Beijing, it is planned to hold military parades and other large-scale solemn events. As part of official visits to the Central Asian states in March in memory of those who died during the Second World War, I visited the Victory Park and the grave of an unknown soldier in Dushanbe, as well as a memorial complex in memory of the blockade of Leningrad in Bishkek.

In turn SCO secretariat is also planned to hold a number of events dedicated to this memorable date and aimed at preserving historical memory. Some of them have already taken place.

In April together with the Russian Embassy in China a football tournament “Victory Cup” was organized. In the same month, on the basis of the headquarters of the organization, the SCO model was held-an annual interactive game with the participation of schoolchildren, imitating the work of the SCO bodies. This year, the central topic of discussion was the 80th anniversary of the Victory in World War II and the education of the United Nations.

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