Financial crisis to boost body's economic activities

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-06-15 08:10

ALMATY: The current global financial crisis can actually boost the economic activity of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a Kazakh expert on political affairs said.

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The regional body needs to change its model of operation in order to launch cooperative projects on a large scale in Central Asia, Konstantin Syroezhkin, chief researcher at the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies, told Chinese media on Saturday.

Syroezhkin said the future of the SCO depends on the role the regional body takes in the current financial crisis.

Due to the crisis, economic security has become the first priority of all countries and it requires united action. He said the crisis is actually consolidating economic cooperation within the SCO.

He said China's support is of great significance for member states of the SCO to deal with the financial crisis.

The SCO can set up a common energy market and a unified system of transportation and logistics, which will not only help create jobs but also lay a sound foundation for future development, Syroezhkin said.

He said it was necessary to speed up the introduction of cooperative deals on international information security and the fight against drug trafficking within the framework of the regional organization.

Syroezhkin said SCO has been playing an important role in security in Central Asia.

He said the SCO also needs to cooperate with international organizations, such as the Commonwealth of Independent States and its affiliated collective security body, economic communities in Asia and Europe, NATO and the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

Xinhua

SCO Member States

	Kazakhstan
	China
	Kyrgyzstan
	Russia
	Tajikistan
	Uzbekistan

SCO Observer States

	India
	Iran
	Mongolia
	Pakistan

BRICs

	Institutional reform on BRIC agenda
	Brazil
	Russia
	India

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