- Leaders adopt post-summit declaration, reaffirming their commitment to SCO Charter, as well as to further strengthen good-neighborliness, friendship, multidisciplinary cooperation
- Beyond declaration, leaders also sign more than 20 other documents covering security, drug trafficking, technology, transport, energy, environmental cooperation
Kyrgyzstan hosted the latest summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in its capital, Bishkek, marking the Eurasian bloc's 25th anniversary.
Following a meeting of the Council of Heads of State, the organization's 10 member states adopted key documents covering security, drug trafficking, technology, transport, energy and environmental cooperation.
A key post-summit declaration was also adopted, reaffirming the member states' commitment to the organization’s charter, as well as their commitment to further strengthening good-neighborliness, friendship and multidisciplinary cooperation.
Here are some important details about the documents adopted:
According to the Bishkek Declaration, the text of which has been published by the Kremlin, the member states voiced appreciation for the organization's achievements in ensuring regional security and stability.
It highlighted member states’ position that the SCO is not a military-political bloc and is not directed against other states or international organizations.
“The SCO operates on the basis of openness, non-interference, equality and mutual respect,” it said.
The document further said that the organization welcomed cooperation with “interested states, international organizations and multilateral associations whose activities are not directed against the interests of the SCO and its member states.”
In this context, the document underlined cooperation in the SCO Plus format, which includes non-members such as Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Egypt, as facilitating the formation of a “broad, inclusive global partnership.”
It also stressed the importance of further strengthening the SCO's dialogue with the UN.
The document also reaffirmed the need to conclude an “international legally binding instrument” to ensure transparency and provide reliable guarantees against an arms race in outer space.
“Member states reiterate that the unilateral and unlimited buildup of global missile defense systems by individual countries or groups of states has a negative impact on international security and stability,” the document said, defining attempts by states to ensure their own security at the expense of the security of others as “unacceptable.”
They also advocated strict adherence to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and called for full compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention.
They expressed “deep concern” over developments in the Middle East and around Iran, advocating a resolution to the conflict solely through political and diplomatic means.
“Member states note that the only possible way to ensure peace and stability in the Middle East is a comprehensive and just settlement of the Palestinian question,” it said, adding that they also reaffirm their commitment to combating terrorism, separatism and extremism.
The bloc's chairmanship will pass to Pakistan.
Aside from the post-summit declaration, the SCO also adopted 27 other documents covering security, drug trafficking, technology, transport, energy and environmental cooperation between member states.
A statement by the Kyrgyz presidency on the outcomes of the summit said that the documents adopted included a protocol on amendments and additions to the SCO Charter, which was adopted in the Russian city of St. Petersburg in June 2002.
The statement said that documents were adopted on regulations concerning the Universal Center for Countering Challenges and Threats to the Security of SCO Member States and the Executive Committee of the SCO Anti-Drug Center.
Another key document mentioned was an action plan for the development of ports and logistics centers of the member states for 2026-2030.
Notably, documents were also signed on declaring Pakistan's city of Lahore as the tourist and cultural capital of the SCO in 2026-2027, as well as on the development of cooperation in the field of energy conservation, efficiency and systems, and on providing assistance to states affected by emergency situations.
A memorandum of understanding was also signed between the SCO Secretariat and the African Union Commission.
It also noted that memorandums were adopted between the governments of SCO member states on cooperation in the information sphere, as well as in combating climate change and in the field of artificial intelligence.
It added that a protocol on amendments and supplements to a 2010 agreement on cooperation between the governments of SCO member states in combating crime was also signed.
