Members are building on consensus that boosting economic ties and improving living standards are the way forward

The prime ministers meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, in Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan, proved to be a great success on Wednesday. By giving the green light to a list of multilateral projects between 2012 and 2016 and inking a memorandum on enhancing customs cooperation to protect intellectual property rights, the meeting has sent an unmistakable message to the outside world that the SCO members are making concrete efforts to further expand their cooperation.

In a joint communique that was issued at the end of the meeting, the prime ministers of the SCO member states vowed to deepen pragmatic cooperation, especially in the economic, infrastructure and energy sectors. This is in conformity with the new trend the organization has been cultivating in recent years.

Founded in 2001 in Shanghai, the bloc, which comprises China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, started as a security group, but it is showing an increasing penchant for deepening economic cooperation. Its summit held in Beijing in June set the tone for boosting the momentum of the two wheels of security and economic cooperation for the next decade.

What the Bishkek meeting has achieved this week indicates the SCO is continuously building on this good momentum and making its two wheels spin even faster. The maturity of the bloc and the solidarity of its members should help build confidence in the region's common development.

In a move that epitomizes China's long-standing commitments to the healthy growth of the SCO, Premier Wen Jiabao put forward China's proposals on deepening pragmatic cooperation within the SCO during Wednesday's meeting. He elaborated on the measures member states will take to enhance economic, people-to-people and cultural cooperation. China is willing to see the SCO continue to prosper and assume a greater role on both the regional and global stage.

With more than 10 years' growth, the bloc has matured and anchored itself in the world architecture. With a combined territory covering 60 percent of the Eurasian landmass, the SCO has grown to be one of the world's most dynamic geopolitical organizations.

Cherishing a common desire for prosperity, the SCO member states complement one another in their advantages. Through years of exploration, they have set an example of regional cooperation and created a new model of international relations based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and trust.

Against the backdrop of the sluggish global economic recovery, and with some countries in West Asia and North Africa still mired in turbulence and violence, the SCO's commitments to bringing real benefits to their people through reciprocal collaboration will contribute to peace and development in the region and beyond.

As the bloc has thrived over the years, it has been increasingly looked upon by many as ballast for peace, security and stability in the region. Its continuous focus on security issues and long-term commitments to combating the "three evil forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism have played an indispensable role in regional peace and stability.

The SCO has taken account of the situation in Central Asia and reached the consensus that boosting the economy and improving people's living conditions is the only way for the region to realize political stability. It has worked hard to tackle the root causes of the "three evil forces" by promoting economic development, economic cooperation, infrastructure development and collectively raising people's standards of living.

To strengthen defense and security cooperation, the SCO has established a mechanism facilitating communication between the members' military chiefs over the last decade. To date, member states have staged eight anti-terrorism drills, held five security forums and conducted military exchanges in such fields as personnel training. The drills have evolved from tactical exercises into multilevel exercises featuring strategic consultation, battle preparation and simulated combat. Defense and security cooperation has deepened military trust among the SCO member states and enhanced their ability to respond to new challenges and risks.

It is noteworthy that the bloc has been deepening and expanding its security cooperation into such fields as strategy, law enforcement, anti-drug, anti-money-laundering and combating transnational organized crimes. The success of the SCO has provided the world with a new compass pointing the way toward regional peace, stability and prosperity among nations that are different in race, religion, political systems and cultural backgrounds.

To meet the new challenges and threats in the region, it is natural that the SCO should become more articulate on the regional and global stage and take a more unified stance toward issues of regional and global significance.

The author is a senior writer with China Daily. E-mail: wanghui@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 12/06/2012 page8)