Foreign Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organization meet in Uzbekistan

Asia-Pacific, News July 30, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

The Foreign Ministers from the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) met in Tashkent, Uzbekistan for the Council of Foreign Ministers.

The meeting comes as a run-up to the upcoming SCO leaders summit that is to be held in Samarkand in September 2022. Foreign Ministers from China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and India attended the SCO foreign minister’s summit at the invitation of Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Vladimir Norov.

The two days ministerial level meeting took place in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent on July 28-29. Several affairs of transregional and international importance were discussed among the top diplomats.

During the summit, Norov announced that apart from all the heads of state from the permanent members of SCO, leaders from at least 3 SCO observer states would attend the upcoming SCO leaders summit in September 2022. “The heads of SCO observer states, Belarus, Iran, and Mongolia, as well as the President of Turkmenistan [a guest member of SCO] confirmed their participation in the meeting of the Council of Heads of States,” Norov said.

The SCO observer countries also include Afghanistan, whose Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was present during the ministerial summit in Tashkent. However, foreign ministers of SCO partner countries Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Turkey did participate in the Tashkent meeting.

Major objectives of the SCO ministerial summit were focused on promoting mutual economic confidence and good-neighborly relations among member states; strengthening regional peace, security, and stability; as well as creating a framework for effective cooperation in the political sphere, trade and economy, culture, science and technology, education, energy, transportation and connectivity, tourism, and environmental protection.

While speaking with the reporters, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said “I would like to mention one of decisions to be made today, approval of a draft roadmap for movement of goods with the use of increasingly higher numbers of national guarantees in mutual trade.” He also urged the SCO member states to broaden the use of national currencies for international trade.

The SCO foreign ministers also discussed the possibility of including Iran as a permanent member of the organization. India’s minister of external affairs S. Jaishankar stated that Iran’s entry into the SCO will strengthen the forum’s influence on the world market. “The SCO members will have the opportunity to use the facilities of the Chabahar port in Iran,” he added.

Chinese delegation led by Foreign Minister Wang Yi hold talks with Russian delegation led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on July 29, 2022 — ^{Chinese delegation led by Foreign Minister Wang Yi hold talks with the Russian delegation led by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on July 29, 2022. (Image Credit: Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs)}

Several SCO foreign ministers also held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held a bilateral meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The two sides agreed to maintain high-level exchange with each other to promote mutual cooperation in various fields.

Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Mutaqqi met with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. During the meeting, Bilawal reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to a stable and prosperous Afghanistan and stressed the need for further promoting contacts, humanitarian assistance, and increasing trade between the two countries.