Experts hail president’s speech at summit as he calls for further economic integration

President Xi Jinping addresses the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization via video link from Beijing on July 4. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

China has proposed scaling up local currency settlement among member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), expanding cooperation on sovereign digital currency, and promoting the establishment of a development bank within the organization.

President Xi Jinping made the proposals on July 4 when addressing the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO, via video, from Beijing. He also called on SCO member states to keep to the right direction of economic globalization, uphold solidarity and cooperation and enhance mutual trust.

India, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the regional organization, hosted the annual SCO Summit in a virtual format.

Iran was accepted as a full member of the SCO during the summit, becoming the ninth member in addition to China, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and India. Belarus signed a memorandum of obligations on joining the SCO.

Addressing the summit, Xi also called on the SCO countries to keep in mind the overall and long-term interests of the region and make foreign policies independently.

“We must be highly vigilant against external attempts to foment a new Cold War or camp-based confrontation in our region. We must resolutely reject any interference in our internal affairs and the instigation of ‘color revolutions’ by any country under whatever pretext,” he said.

While calling for joint efforts to uphold peace and safeguard common security, Xi underlined the need to advance pragmatic cooperation to expedite economic recovery.

China stands ready to work with all parties to implement the Global Security Initiative, promote the settlement of international disputes through dialogue and consultation, and encourage political settlement of international and regional hot spots, to forge a solid security shield in the region, he said.

Xi also underlined the need for SCO member states to oppose protectionism, unilateral sanctions and the overstretching of national security, and reject moves to set up barriers, decouple or disrupt supply chains.

He said that China is ready to work with all parties to implement the Global Development Initiative to “make the pie of win-win cooperation bigger, and ensure that more development gains will be shared more fairly by people across the world”.

Xi called for enhancing the connection of high-quality Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation with the development strategies of various countries as well as regional cooperation initiatives.

“We should further promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, speed up the development of port infrastructure and regional and international logistics corridors, and ensure stable and smooth functioning of regional industrial and supply chains,” he said.

Experts hailed Xi’s speech at the SCO summit, saying the Chinese president highlighted the issues of common security, cooperation and economic growth, which are currently of vital importance to the world.

Lawrence Loh, director of the National University of Singapore’s Centre for Governance and Sustainability, said Xi’s speech reinforced the importance of the SCO in spearheading global peace and prosperity. 

“Coming on the heels of deepening geopolitical tensions, the speech emphasized the need for mutual trust and interaction among countries to safeguard a peaceful world for all,” he said.

In the face of the macroeconomic challenges faced by many developing Asian countries, efforts must be made to foster strong economic recovery, Loh said. “Regional collaborations such as the Belt and Road Initiative will put countries on the path of good economic progress that will benefit their people,” he said. 

Shakeel Ahmad Ramay, CEO of the Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research and Development, in Islamabad, Pakistan, said Xi’s speech had pinpointed major issues and the clear way forward.

President Xi said there is a need to enhance solidarity and trust and ensure peace in the region, Ramay noted, adding that this depicts the realities on the ground in the SCO region. 

Atul Dalakoti, executive director of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said he was impressed that Xi talked about safeguarding regional peace, and strengthening exchanges to create win-win cooperation between member states and fostering more meaningful economic cooperation. This will result in more sustainable and balanced economic recoveries for SCO countries.

The “Shanghai Spirit” champions mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations, and the pursuit of common development. Xi’s remarks are “in line with the ‘Shanghai Spirit’ to enhance solidarity and mutual trust to achieve a better tomorrow”, Dalakoti said.

The SCO is perhaps the most important and inclusive organization of Eurasian countries and is immune to Cold War baggage, said Karori Singh, former director and emeritus fellow of the South Asia Studies Centre at India’s University of Rajasthan.

Singh noted that Xi emphasized mutual trust as the key to enhancing cooperation, and gave an assurance of working with other nations for global security. 

During his speech, Xi stressed the importance of strengthening people-to-people exchanges and mutual learning and the harmonious development of different civilizations, and he welcomed all countries to work together to implement the Global Civilization Initiative.

“We should practice multilateralism and improve global governance … We should make global governance more just and equitable, and advance modernization of the entire humanity through collective efforts to promote equal rights, equal opportunities and fair rules for all,” he said.

“We should support more SCO engagements with observer states, dialogue partners, and other regional and international organizations such as the UN, and jointly promote world peace, drive global development and safeguard the international order,” Xi said.

Ramay, from the Asian Institute of Eco-civilization Research, said that on the economic front, Xi had stressed the importance of cooperation and China’s willingness to share the fruits of its success. He cited Xi’s emphasis on synergizing BRI objectives with national aspirations and the development agendas of member states.

Following the summit, the leaders of the member states signed and issued the New Delhi Declaration of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO, and jointly released a statement on cooperation in countering extremism and a statement on cooperation in the field of digital transformation.

At the meeting, which was chaired virtually by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the leaders also approved a series of resolutions, including the SCO economic development strategy through 2030.

It was decided at the meeting that Kazakhstan will next assume the rotating presidency of the SCO.

Leaders of the SCO member states spoke positively about the remarkable achievements made in the development of the regional organization. They also pledged to enhance cooperation in a wide range of fields, including strengthening the alignment of the BRI with the Eurasian Economic Union.

Apart from Modi and Xi, other leaders who joined via video link included Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon, Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, as well as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The formation of a “more representative” and multipolar world order is in the global interest, the SCO leaders said in their joint declaration, adding that they oppose bloc, ideological and confrontational approaches to address problems and security challenges.

Expressing concern about the situation in Afghanistan, the SCO leaders said they consider it “essential to establish an inclusive government in Afghanistan with the participation of representatives of all ethnic, religious and political groups in Afghan society”.

Member states are determined to deepen law enforcement and security cooperation within the organization, promote multilateral cooperation, and coordinate responses to traditional and non-traditional security threats and challenges, among other commitments, they said. 

Pakistan’s Sharif said in his statement that terrorism should not be “used as a cudgel for diplomatic point scoring”. 

The New Delhi Declaration stressed that the member states, adhering to the “Shanghai Spirit”, are committed to jointly strengthening regional peace, security, and stability. It called on the international community to support the United Nations in playing a central role, abandon politicization and double standards, and strengthen global counterterrorism cooperation.

Beyond terrorism, the declaration listed several global challenges, including new and emerging conflicts, turbulence in the markets, supply chain instability, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The world is undergoing unprecedented transformation and entering a new era of rapid technological development that requires an increase in the effectiveness of global institutions, the declaration said.

Russian leader Putin told the summit that Moscow will continue to oppose Western sanctions. “Russia counters all external sanctions, pressures and provocations and continues to develop as never before,” he said.

In other remarks, Putin said that more than 80 percent of trade between China and Russia is now in rubles and yuan, and he urged other SCO members to follow the same process of trading in their own currencies.

Xinhua contributed to this report.

Aparajit Chakraborty is a freelance journalist for China Daily.

Contact the writers at caodesheng@chinadaily.com.cn