The President of Kazakhstan: the member-countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) need to have a common position in their relations with Afghanistan

It is necessary for the member-countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation to work out a common position in their relations with Afghanistan. President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan said this, addressing the enlarged session of the SCO summit in Saint Petersburg.

According to him, the present meeting is of a historic character. Great attention at it is paid to security in Asia, he said.

The President of Kazakhstan pointed out that the SCO is an open organisation and is ready to admit new members. The main criterion, said he, is that the contending country should share the aims and principles fixed in the SCO Charter. The Kazakh President underscored that it was necessary in the near future to work out a system of admitting new members to the SCO. Apart from that, according to him, it is necessary to decide organisational questions - to create a secretariat in Beijing and to form the organisation's budget. The SCO will be financed on the share basis. But the size of the share is still to be determined.

However, one of the most important aspects of the activity of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, said Nazarbayev, is to combat international extremism and terrorism. It is also necessary to pay attention to intensifying the work under the programme for multilateral economic cooperation between the countries in the region. Transport issues are also very important for the SCO, said the President of Kazakhstan. In particular, it is necessary to work out a system of using and developing multipurpose transport corridors for the SCO countries which are situated far from the sea, he remarked. Moreover, it is necessary to work out a common approach to trade in oil and gas and to across-border trade. Nursultan Nazarbayev believes that the next SCO session should be attended by ministers supervising these industries. It is also necessary to pay attention to the issues connected with the World Trade Organisation, because some SCO countries are not yet members of this organisation, said Nursultan Nazarbayev.

Speaking about the security problem, the President of Kazakhstan pointed out that the SCO countries have a unique experience in settling border conflicts. This experience could be used by other countries. Nursultan Nazarbayev underscored that the SCO is not a military organisation, and its members can themselves choose how to ensure stability and security in their territories.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation has five members: Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.