Samarkand Tribune of the SCO: President of Uzbekistan’s New Security Initiatives

September 16, 2022

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President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, noted that the meeting of heads of states of Shanghai Cooperation Organization took place on September 16 in the city of Samarkand. The event was attended by all leaders of the SCO member states.

 

(Sorce: https://president.uz/ru/lists/view/5543)

 

In his opinion, the initiative reflected the spirit of Uzbekistan’s presidency in the Organization, and was filled with timely and relevant proposals to fill the SCO agenda.

 

“At the beginning of his speech, the President of Uzbekistan identified obstacles to the sustainable development of the SCO countries, among them: climate change, lack of water and natural resources, socio-economic consequences of the pandemic, the crisis of energy and food security.

 

“As the head of Uzbekistan noted in his speech, it is necessary to preserve the non-aligned status of the SCO, openness and orientation of the Organization to a broad partnership and be guided by the principles of consensus, equality and mutual respect.

 

The initiative presupposes more effective provision of stable and secure development of the region. In a confrontational environment, it is important for the SCO not to engage in conflict and to preserve the principles of non-interference outlined in the charter. In this we see the main wisdom and message of the leader of Uzbekistan to the world community,” said the head of the Chinese think tank.

 

President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev separately emphasized that Uzbekistan firmly adheres to the principle of indivisibility of security, and that SCO activities should continue to be oriented toward a broad partnership with Central Asia retaining its status as the “geographical core” of the SCO.

 

In fact, security issues in the SCO play a key role, and speaking of this principle it should be noted that in the SCO the security of one state must not be ensured at the expense of security of another. This issue is as relevant today as ever in the conditions of new challenges to security in Eurasia. In these words one can clearly hear the strategic vision of the President of Uzbekistan, because any significant crisis situation in the SCO countries can generate a series of negative consequences that will affect all states.

 

The next important initiative Uzbekistan announced at the Summit is to develop Common Principles and Approaches to Food Security, as well as to hold an International Conference on Food Security.

 

 At the same time, the speech emphasized the need for specific measures to harmonize the regulatory framework, joint research and innovation.

 

We consider the adoption of this document to be an important continuation of the Uzbek initiative to launch a mechanism of regular ministerial meetings and expert consultations in the sphere of food security.

 

The urgency of this initiative is conditioned by Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s aspiration to provide all vital conditions for the people of Uzbekistan especially ensuring social and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food for people. This initiative is primarily designed to ensure the principle of the interests of the people above all.

 

The most important mechanism for ensuring regional security and stability is the creation and operation of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure in Tashkent. Uzbekistan constantly supports the activities of this body. In the current environment of emerging new security challenges, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has suggested raising the effectiveness of SCO RATS, including in preventing and responding swiftly to security challenges and threats.

 

In this vein the leader of Uzbekistan placed an essential emphasis on youth and spoke of the advisability of taking a complex of effective measures to prevent the involvement of young people in extremist organizations, to create a sustainable immunity to various destructive ideologies.

 

According to the observations of our institute’s experts, Uzbekistan’s initiatives within the SCO are highly relevant and have a deep logical and structural interconnection.  Back in 2018, at the summit in Qingdao, at the initiative of Uzbekistan, a Joint Appeal of SCO Heads of State to Youth was adopted in which the leaders of SCO member states stressed that being firmly convinced that the involvement of wide circles of youth in various terrorist, separatist and extremist structures poses a large-scale threat to peace and stability. Five years later, this issue remains relevant, and the head of Uzbekistan reminds the world of this once again.

 

Traditionally, in his speech, the President of Uzbekistan emphasized: “among the key priorities of the SCO should remain the strengthening of coordination in promoting the establishment of peace and socio-economic reconstruction of Afghanistan.”

 

Uzbekistan has repeatedly organized events and provided platforms for discussion of issues related to the solution of the Afghan problem, but the key priority of Tashkent is not to interfere in Kabul’s affairs, and this is the secret of Uzbek diplomacy.

 

This time the leader of Uzbekistan offered to jointly establish a special Fund for Humanitarian Support for Afghanistan in Termez, a border city of Uzbekistan, making use of the modern infrastructure of the international transport and logistics hub created there.

 

In our opinion, Termez can really become a springboard for peace in Afghanistan; Uzbekistan has already successfully implemented social and economic projects on training and trade development for Afghanistan. Thus, “international fueling” is offered to restore peace and stability in Afghanistan, we are sure that the international community, particularly the SCO countries will widely support this initiative.

 

 

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