14th Meeting of Heads of Governments of SCO Member States concluded in Zhengzhou, China

The two-day 14th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Governments of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (CSO) Member States was concluded on 15 December 2015. It was held at Zhengzhou, which is the provincial capital of Henan Province in east-central China.

It was attended by PM of Kazakhstan K Masimov, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, PM of Kyrgyzstan T Sariev, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, PM of Tajikistan K Rasulzoda and First Deputy PM of Uzbekistan R Azimov and representatives of observer states.

India, which is an acceding state at present, was represented by Minister of State for External Affairs Gen V K Singh.

In the meeting, heads of delegations exchanged views on a wide range of issues of international and regional economic growth.

They also discussed prospects and measures for improving economic and humanitarian cooperation for further strengthening of mutual understanding and traditional friendship between peoples of the SCO member states.

At the end of the meeting, the leaders issued a joint statement on regional economic cooperation which emphasized the importance of China’s One Belt, One Road initiative for developing infrastructure in the region.

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) or Shanghai Pact is an intergovernmental organization founded in Shanghai on 15 June 2001 by six countries, People’s Republic of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
• The main objectives of the SCO are to
i. Strengthen relations among member states
ii. Promote cooperation in political affairs, economics and trade, scientific-technical, cultural, and educational spheres as well as in energy, transportation, tourism, and environmental protection
iii. Safeguard regional peace, security, and stability
iv. Create a democratic, equitable international political and economic order. With assistance from the Asian
• In July 2015, India and Pakistan were allowed accepted as the full members of the organisation.
• There are four observer states at present – Afghanistan, Belarus, Mongolia and Iran.

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