SCO Heads of State Council meets in Yekaterinburg

(SOC (www.sectsco.org))
Updated: 2009-07-20 13:14

The Russian President Dmitry Medvedev chaired the ninth meeting of the SCO Heads of State Council in Yekaterinburg on June 15-16,2009. The documents adopted at the summit include Yekaterinburg Declaration and Joint Communiqué.

The SCO Secretary-General Bolat Nurgaliev presented a report on the activity of the Organisation following the previous HSC meeting in Dushanbe.

Yekaterinburg Declaration of the Heads of the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

In accordance with the outcome of the Heads of State Council meeting held on 15 and 16 June 2009 in Yekaterinburg the heads of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation state the following:

1. Serious changes are taking place in the contemporary international environment. Aspiration to peace and sustainable development, promotion of equal cooperation became the spirit of the times. The tendency towards true multipolarity is irreversible. There is a growing significance of the regional aspect in settling global problems.

The SCO member states, reaffirming their commitment to common development on the basis of the principles and provisions of the Charter of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the Treaty on Long-Term Good-Neighbourly Relations, Friendship and Cooperation among the SCO Member States, consider as a priority task maintaining constructive dialogue and deepening close interaction and partnership to jointly seek effective ways of resolving global and regional problems with the use of the growing potential and international prestige of the SCO.

2. The SCO member states believe that international cooperation is a basic and efficient instrument for countering new challenges and threats, coping with the global financial crisis, ensuring energy and food security and settling such a pressing issue as climate change.

3. The current situation in the global economic and financial sector points to the need to increase cooperation of the international community in the field of controlling and managing international finances, making joint efforts to prevent the growth and spread of financial crisis risks, maintaining economic stability.

The member states of the Organisation together with the international community intend to make efforts for the formation of a more just, equal, all-embracing and well-regulated international financial regime which takes into account a true balance of interests of all its participants and gives all States equal access to the advantages of globalisation.

To that end interaction and sharing of information must be strengthened as regards the international financial sector and the issues of tackling the consequences of the global financial crisis in the SCO region.

4. In current circumstances the SCO member states underline the growing significance of bolstering trade, economic and investment cooperation in the framework of the Organisation, including involving the potential of the observer states and dialogue partners.

The parties noted the need to speed up the implementation of major projects which are designed to ensure the expansion of transport communication capabilities of the region and access to world markets, development of social infrastructure, formation of modern international centres for logistics, trade and tourism, construction of new factories, introduction of innovative and energy-saving technologies, including renewable sources of energy.

The implementation of these projects, arrangement of international transport corridors, modernisation of railways and motorways will create preconditions for strengthening the potential of the region as a transcontinental bridge and giving a new impulse to the development of economic links between Europe and Asia.

5. The SCO member states, noting the key significance of energy sector for successful economic development and creation of favourable preconditions for improving the living standards of their citizens, express determination to further advance mutually beneficial cooperation in this field on the basis of equality with the aim of ensuring effective, reliable and environmentally safe energy supplies.

6. The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation proceeds from the need to further cement the legal foundations of international relations determined by generally accepted principles and norms of the international law and international obligations of States.

Strengthening the central and coordinating role of the United Nations Organisation in world affairs, enhancing the effectiveness of its mechanisms with the aim of adequately responding to modern challenges, changing political and economic reality remains an urgent task. The reform of the UN Security Council must gain as much wider consensus of members of the international community.

The SCO member states intend to strengthen coordination on the issues of reforming the UN and its Security Council.

7. The SCO member states stress the significance of the issue of ensuring international information security as one of the key elements of the common system of international security.

8. The SCO member states, reaffirming their commitment to a dialogue of civilisations, values of peace, tolerance, mutual respect and consent in international and interdenominational relations, irrespective of ethnic origin, religious and other beliefs, oppose drawing parallels between the fight against international terrorism and confrontation against any particular religion.

9. Maintenance of international peace is possible only in conditions of equal security for all States. The security of some states must not be achieved to the detriment of the security of others.

Settlement of international and regional conflicts must be conducted by political diplomatic means on the basis of the principles of equality and mutual respect, non-interference in internal affairs of sovereign states.

The attempts to achieve unilateral advantages in defence field are counterproductive as they undermine the strategic balance and stability in the world, do not benefit confidence building, reduction of arms and disarmament.

10. The SCO member states note that proliferation of nuclear weapons poses a serious threat to international peace and security.

The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NNPT) is the basic element of the international regime on the prevention of proliferation of nuclear weapons. Threats of proliferation of nuclear weapons can and must be eliminated on the basis of the NNPT provided that its parties unconditionally fulfill their obligations. The SCO member states reaffirm their strong support for the NNPT, welcome the multilateral efforts on its reinforcement, and are determined to move towards raising the effectiveness of the Treaty on the basis of the unity of its three key components: non-proliferation, disarmament, peaceful use of nuclear energy.

The SCO member states reiterate their intention to assist further implementation of the Russia – U.S. initiative on fighting against acts of nuclear terrorism, and also welcome the coming into effect on 21 March 2009 of the Treaty on Establishing a Nuclear Free Zone in Central Asia.

11. The SCO member states welcome the start of Russo-American negotiations on drafting a Treaty on the Reduction of Offensive Strategic Arms.

12. The SCO member states stand up for resuming the process of negotiations on the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula. They call to show restraint and continue the search for mutually acceptable solutions on the basis of the previously reached agreements.

13. The SCO member states express grave concern over the complicated situation in Afghanistan related to illicit drug trafficking, terrorism and transnational organised crime which pose a threat to the whole international community.

In this regard the parties acknowledged the need to increase interaction with the SCO observer states, Afghanistan and other states concerned, as well as with regional and international organisations, first and foremost, the UN and its specialised institutions.

The SCO member states in close interaction with other states and international organisations concerned intend to establish anti-narcotic and financial security belts in the region.

14. The SCO member states welcome the end of an internal military conflict in Sri Lanka, and express hope for establishing a firm peace, strengthening security and stability in the country on the basis of ensuring its state sovereignty and territorial integrity, guaranteeing the rights of all ethnic and religious groups.

15. The SCO member states consider as a priority task enhancing the effectiveness of interaction in the field of a timely joint response to natural and manmade emergency events, implementing a set of measures aimed to diminish their impact on society and economy.

16. The SCO member states attach special importance to strengthening cooperation in the field of effective counteraction against the threat of dangerous infections and other infectious diseases. To that end the parties acknowledged the need to mobilise available resources and launch joint work on preventing the spread of epidemic diseases.

17. The SCO member countries state that the Organisation has become an essential element of the fledgling system of security and cooperation in the Asia Pacific region.

Noting with satisfaction the growing interest of the international community in establishing ties with the SCO, they welcome the joining of the Republic of Belarus and the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to cooperation in the SCO framework as dialogue partners.

The SCO member states stand ready to expand practical interaction with the United Nations Organisation, Commonwealth of Independent States, Association of South-East Asian Nations, Eurasian Economic Community, Collective Security Treaty Organisation, Economic Cooperation Organisation, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, other international and regional organisations, and to create on this basis a wide partnership network.

The SCO member states are open to dialogue aimed to bring States closer together and facilitate the building of a more just world order, to cement global stability and economic development.