Qingdao summit to be 'new milestone' in SCO history: Chinese FM

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi answers questions on China’s foreign policy and external relations at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress in Beijing, March 8, 2018. [Photo by Kuang Linhua/China Daily]   

BEIJING - The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Qingdao this year will be "a new milestone in the history of the SCO," Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Thursday.

"We welcome the SCO back to China, and expect it to embark on a new journey in Qingdao," Wang told a press conference on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress.

Slated for June in East China's Qingdao city, the summit will be the first of its kind after a membership expansion last year. The SCO now has China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan as full members.

Wang said China expects to work with other SCO members at the summit to make the organization more cohesive, effective and influential.

With a focus on revitalizing the Shanghai Spirit, the summit will enhance trust and solidarity between the member states and build a closer SCO community, said the minister.

Participants in the Qingdao summit will work on a five-year outline for implementation of the Treaty on Long-term Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, as well as a number of resolutions or documents concerning security, economic, cultural and environmental cooperation, according to Wang.

They will also advance Belt and Road projects in SCO member states, he said.

China and other SCO members will help the organization take a clearer stand on major international and regional issues and play a more active role in regional cooperation and global economic governance, said Wang.