President Mamnoon Hussain and Chinese Ministry of Foreign.
BEIJING/ KARACHI (ENN) The cross-state cooperation in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has become broader and the group’s international influence further enhanced after Pakistan and India assumed full membership, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday.
The organisation has consistently adhered to the principle of openness and actively carried out foreign exchanges, HuaChunying, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, said, adding that more and more countries at present want to deepen their cooperation within the SCO.
This, she noted, fully reflected the strong attraction of the multination group.
“The SCO member states attach great importance to the wishes of relevant countries and will sincerely study it in accordance with the provisions of the relevant documents of the SCO and the principle of consensus,” Hua added.
Jointly led by Russia and China, the SCO was launched in 2001 to combat radicalism and other security concerns in their own countries and across Central Asia.
India and Pakistan, the two new members, were added last year and Iran has been knocking at the door. Tehran is currently an observer rather than a full member of a bloc that also includes four ex-Soviet Central Asian republics.
However, “the traditional hostility between India and Pakistan could affect the efficiency of the SCO’s decision-making process,” Sun Zhuangzhi, the head of the SCO Research Centre affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, wrote in the official China Daily.
In response to a question about a recent statement made by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, pertaining to an increase in the uranium enrichment capacity if a nuclear deal falls with the world powers, she said: “Under the current situation, China hopes that all parties concerned can proceed from the long-term and overall interests.”
China also wishes for the countries to “continue to maintain and implement comprehensive agreements, and fully implement their agreement obligations”, Hua mentioned.
She further explained that it is in the common interest of the international fraternity and would be helpful to maintain the international nuclear non-proliferation system as well as peace and stability in the Middle East.
According to Hua, China has repeatedly stated its position regarding the comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear issue.
