A meeting of the Council of Heads of State – members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) – took place at the Palace of Independence.
According to the press service of Akorda, at the beginning of the meeting the heads of delegations signed a decision on the admission of the Republic of Belarus as a member of the SCO.
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev addressed the meeting. He said that thanks to the support of SCO participants during Kazakhstan's chairmanship, around 150 events were held at various levels, including digital, tourism, and energy forums, as well as the SCO Youth Council. Overall, as Tokayev stated, Kazakhstan had fully achieved all the goals and objectives announced at the previous summit.
The Head of State outlined areas which, in his view, are of strategic importance for all SCO countries. According to him, firstly, mutual trust and cooperation in the field of security should be strengthened. The President identified the expansion of trade and economic ties as the second priority area. In this regard, Tokayev made a number of proposals.
"The SCO countries have a solid technological base and possess a colossal market for the development of all vital sectors of the economy. The development of special tax, customs, and migration regimes will help make significant progress in this direction. In this context, Kazakhstan's proposal to create an SCO Economic Preferences Base remains relevant. The need to create a single platform for discussing and approving investment projects has become evident. We propose creating a Financial Mechanism for Project Activities based on the Astana International Financial Centre. China, Russia, India, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan are already actively working on this platform. Overall, 20% of AIFC residents are companies from SCO countries.", the President noted.
He named the strengthening of transport connectivity through the creation of effective corridors and reliable supply chains as the third area of cooperation.
"We attach exceptional importance to the further synergy of the Chinese mega-project 'One Belt, One Road', the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, and the trans-Eurasian corridors in the 'North – South' direction, including the 'Central Asia – South Asia' vector. To implement these plans, it is important to take practical steps to create a Partner Network of Strategic Ports and Logistics Centres within the SCO.", said Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
The Head of State also pointed out the need for reform and modernisation of the SCO. In particular, he proposed strengthening the role of the SCO Secretariat and Secretary-General in the organisation.
Also speaking at the summit were the President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, the Acting President of Iran Mohammad Mokhber, the President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping, the President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov, the Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif, the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of India Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, the SCO Secretary-General Zhang Ming, and the Director of the Executive Committee of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure Ruslan Mirzaev.
Summing up the meeting, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted that a range of issues on the further promotion of multifaceted cooperation had been discussed, and the direction for the SCO's future development had been determined.
"We look with optimism towards the future of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. I am confident that the documents we will now sign will open a new page of cooperation within the SCO and will contribute to the systematic and comprehensive development of our organisation.", the President of Kazakhstan emphasised.