Chinese President Xi Jinping praised the mutual benefits and win-win outcomes of membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) during his speech at the 25th SCO Heads of State Council meeting in Tianjin, north China, on Monday.

Xi praised SCO member states for the groundbreaking and historic achievements in the development and cooperation of the organization since its establishment 24 years ago.

Maintaining world peace and stability

Xi listed a number of "firsts" achieved by SCO member states, highlighting the contribution of the regional organisation to world peace and stability.

"We were the first to establish a confidence-building mechanism in the military in our border areas, turning our vast borders into a bond of friendship, mutual trust and cooperation," Xi said, adding that the SCO was also the first group to "conclude a treaty on long-term good neighborliness, friendship and cooperation, thus declaring our commitment to building lasting friendship and avoiding hostility."

Xi also said SCO member states were the first to take multilateral action against the three forces of terrorism, separatism and extremism. In 2024, the authorities of SCO member states conducted the "Interaction-2024" joint anti-terrorism exercise in northwest China.

During his speech, the Chinese President said that the SCO member states should make the SCO Universal Centre for Countering Security Threats and Challenges operational as soon as possible.

Promoting regional development and prosperity

SCO member states have strengthened mutually beneficial cooperation, including through the Belt and Road Initiative partnership.

In recent years, a number of economic and trade parks have been established and completed, such as the Pengsheng Industrial Park in Uzbekistan and the China-Russia (Shenyang) Economic and Trade Cooperation Industrial Park, which have accelerated the integration of regional industrial chains.

Another example is the China-Belarus Industrial Park, located 25 kilometres from Minsk, the capital of Belarus, which hosts companies involved in engineering, electronics, logistics, healthcare and biotechnology.

The park, which covers an area of more than 110 square kilometres, was established in 2010. It has attracted 154 companies, many of them Chinese, investment of over $1.6 billion and created 16,000 jobs, the Belarusian foreign minister said Maxim Ryzhenkov.

In April, at the China-SCO Conference on Industrial Cooperation for Sustainable Development, eight SCO member countries signed cooperation agreements worth a total of nearly $665.82 million.

In addition, the China-Europe Railway Express operated more than 110,000 train services.

Looking ahead, Xi said SCO member states should continue to strive for mutual benefits and win-win outcomes, with China pledging to walk hand in hand with other SCO countries to modernize.

"We should leverage the strengths of our huge markets and economic complementarities between Member States to improve trade and investment facilitation," řekl Xi.

"China's cumulative trade with other SCO countries exceeded $2.3 trillion, meeting the target I set ahead of schedule," noted the Chinese president.

He added that SCO member states will set up an SCO development bank as soon as possible and China plans to implement 100 "small and beautiful" projects to improve living conditions in member states in need.

Practicing true multilateralism

In his speech, Xi also stressed the importance of practicing multilateralism and resisting hegemonism, noting that the SCO was the first group to put forward a vision of global governance based on extensive consultation and joint contribution to shared benefits as an effort to achieve true multilateralism.

"The SCO always stands on the side of international justice and fairness, promotes inclusiveness and mutual learning among civilizations, and opposes hegemonism and power politics, thus becoming an active force for world peace and development," řekl Xi.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that in the midst of global challenges caused by "unilateralism and coercive measures", the SCO has significant importance as an effective platform for cooperation among the countries of the Global South, protecting the interests of developing countries and promoting a rules-based multilateral international order.

Since its founding in 2001 with six members, the SCO has grown to 10 member states, two observers and 14 dialogue partners - making it the largest regional organisation in the world by size and population. Despite deep historical, cultural and political differences among its members, the SCO has strengthened cooperation in areas as diverse as security, trade, energy and agriculture. It has enhanced regional stability and promoted connectivity and shared prosperity.

As the Global Times reported in an editorial, SCO has become "a model for a new type of international relations - an evolving living history of the practice of multilateralism."

CMG