Another member? Why is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization ever more appealing?

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China.org.cn

Jul 03, 2024, 09:00 ET

BEIJING, July 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from China.org.cn on the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit:

The upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit is expecting a new member state — Belarus, bringing the total tally to ten.

Another member? Why is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization ever more appealing?

Besides, more and more countries are expressing their wishes in joining the SCO family. So, what's so special about this organization?

The most attractive aspects of the SCO lie in the "Shanghai Spirit" that underpins the organization, which features mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations and the pursuit of common development. As the great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore put it, "The sea of danger, doubt and denial around man's little island of certainty challenges him to dare the unknown." With such aspiration, the SCO has been making steady strides for more than two decades, bringing practical benefits to its member states.

First, the SCO has brought a sense of security to its member states. The SCO is one of the first international organizations that has launched an anti-terrorism campaign. In the past three years, the SCO verified and dismantled over 280 international terrorist organization bases, seizing 7,500 pieces of arms and explosives, and shutting down more than 320,000 websites of terrorism, separatism, and extremism. Against the backdrop of frequent geopolitical conflicts, the SCO has effectively safeguarded regional stability, providing its member states with a considerable sense of security, while bringing more certainty to the global landscape.

Secondly, the SCO has spurred common development. "With the huge differences in economic development levels among member states, can it really help achieve equality in economic and trade collaboration?" Questions of the like are not rare. But in fact, by 2021, the combined GDP of the SCO members has reached 23.3 trillion USD, by 2020, the foreign trade volume reached 6.6 trillion USD, indicating a13-fold and 100-fold increase respectively compared to when it was first founded. What's more, members have seen tighter collaboration in the agriculture and transportation fields. Five years since the founding of the SCO agricultural base, more than 30 training courses covering water-saving irrigation and water-soil preservation have been carried out, nurturing more than 4,600 agricultural technology and management talents for 130 or so countries.

Thirdly, the SCO helped the voices of the member states be heard. Unlike some international organizations that are dominated by major powers, the SCO upholds equal status and negotiation. It offers an opportunity for each member state to have their say and seek cooperation. With the increase in the number of member states, as well as the development of these countries, the SCO, which covers nearly half of the global population and one-fourth of the global economic volume, is playing an evermore significant role. Although the organization is growing in terms of voice and influence, the SCO never aims to challenge or subvert the international order, nor will it turn to hegemony and tyranny. Instead, it is staunch in discarding conflict and the Cold War mentality, giving a clearer and more meaningful SCO solution for the world among chaos.

Guided by positive values and spurred by considerable achievements, the SCO is open and inclusive to non-members, provides zero hegemony or suppression, and makes no empty promises for its member states. This is why this 23-year-old organization is so appealing.

This year, what surprises will the SCO summit bring to the world? Let's wait and see.

China Mosaic
http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm

Another member? Why is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization ever more appealing?
http://www.china.org.cn/video/2024-07/03/content_117289170.htm

SOURCE China.org.cn