Regional security summit pushes economic agenda
- Source: Global Times
- [04:28 October 15 2009]
- Comments
Prime ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states attend a ceremony for the signing of agreements after the eighth prime ministers' meeting of the SCO in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 14, 2009.(Xinhua/Liu Weibing)
By Qiu Wei
China, Russia and four Central Asian nations pledged Wednesday to inject new impetus into their economic cooperation, a move that may enrich the agenda of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a regional grouping formed to maintain security.
Despite little public mention of looming regional-security issues such as Iran's nuclear program, or instability in Afghanistan, joint response by the SCO to the global downturn at the summit won't overshadow the initial core agenda by the organization, analysts said.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, and leaders from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan agreed in Beijing to establish a monitoring mechanism for the SCO economy to study the situation of all member states' economic and trade cooperation, service market and mutual investment, a joint communiqué said. They also agreed that their top finance officials would meet by year's end.
Participants drafted measures "to strengthen multilateral economic cooperation, handle the global financial crisis and ensure economic development," Wen was quoted by Reuters as saying after the prime ministers of the SCO member states signed the communiqué.
Wen said the leaders of SCO member states reached a broad consensus at the meeting, which he called a total success, Xinhua reported.
"This document will create good opportunities. It will allow us to secure coordination of anti-crisis measures," Putin said before the adoption of an agreement outlining the crisis response and a post-crisis strategy, AFP reported.
"The crisis has become a catalyst for reform of the international financial system. Our organization should take part in this," he said.
Member nations also agreed to set up a special fund for joint energy, infrastructure and telecommunications projects.
