Meeting of the Council of foreign Ministers of the SCO member States 15.09.2020 12:29

Under the chairmanship of the Russian side, a meeting of the Council of national coordinators of the SCO member States was held in Moscow on September 4-9, 2020. The participants discussed a wide range of documents included in the agenda of the meeting of the Council of foreign Ministers of the Organization’s member States.

The next meeting of the Council of foreign Ministers of the Shanghai cooperation organization (SCO) member States was held in Moscow on September 10. The day before, Russian leader Vladimir Putin met with the foreign Ministers of the SCO member States in a video conference format.

Draft final documents and decisions were agreed upon and will be submitted to the Council of heads of state for consideration. They also discussed draft documents aimed at strengthening cooperation within the SCO in such areas as the development of remote and rural areas in the digital age, improving the organization of road transport, legal assistance and legal relations in civil and criminal cases.

The heads of state agreed on statements on the occasion of the 75-th anniversary of the Victory over fascism in World War II, on cooperation in ensuring international information security, countering the drug threat and spreading terrorist and extremist ideology.

With special emphasis on the elaboration of the draft action Plan for implementation of the SCO development Strategy until 2025, discussed the draft memoranda of cooperation with the European economic Commission of UN, the United Nations conference on trade and development (UNCTAD), ESCAP and the Eurasian economic Commission and the International road transport Union.

The meeting of the SCO Council of foreign Ministers, chaired by Russian foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, discussed the state and prospects for further development of the SCO’s activities in the context of the ongoing spread of a new coronavirus infection in the world.

The Ministers noted that the SCO, based on the principles of mutual trust, mutual benefit, and equality, has confirmed its significant potential as an effective platform for responding to emerging challenges.

The participants touched upon the issues of content and organizational support for the upcoming meeting of the SCO Council of heads of state (SGG). It was noted that the SCO member States intend to increase their contribution to the formation of a multipolar world order based on the principles of international law, including the UN Charter, multilateralism, equal and indivisible security, and non-confrontation and conflict.

The Ministers stressed the need to step up the joint fight against security risks and threats. The SCO is ready to contribute to the international community’s fight against the illicit production, trafficking and abuse of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. A draft Statement of the Council of heads of SCO member States has been approved.

The foreign Ministers reaffirmed the commitment of the SCO member States to the principle of indivisibility of security and the need to strengthen existing mechanisms for maintaining global and regional stability, as well as strategic arms control.

The SCO Member States Ministers are the parties to the Treaty on the Non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, stand for strict compliance with its provisions, comprehensive and balanced promotion of all its goals and principles. They also expressed support for the sustainable implementation of the Joint comprehensive plan of action on the Iranian nuclear program, stressed the importance of maintaining outer space free of all weapons and concluding a legally binding international instrument in this regard in order to prevent an arms race in outer space.

The Ministers welcomed efforts to find a political solution to the situation in Afghanistan through dialogue and an inclusive peace process by the Afghans themselves and under the leadership of the Afghans themselves.

They confirmed their common position that there is no alternative to a political settlement of the conflict in Syria based on respect for the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the state.

The foreign Ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, confirming their support for China’s “one belt, one road” initiative, noted the ongoing work of interested States on the implementation of this project and the integration of the construction of the Eurasian economic Union and the OBOR. The effective interaction of sanitary and epidemiological services and ministries of health of the SCO member States in matters of preserving the health and well-being of the population was noted.

The Ministers discussed the SCO’s cooperation with other international organizations and forums, primarily with the UN and its specialized agencies, the CIS, the CSTO, the EAEU and ASEAN.

The Report on the work of the SCO Secretariat for the past year submitted by the SCO Secretary General was approved. Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO rats Jumakhon Giyasov was informed about the activities of the SCO rats Executive Committee.

The Ministers highly appreciated the work carried out by the Russian side in the framework of the SCO presidency.

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