From Nov. 28 to 29, 2013, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang of the State Council went to Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan, to attend the 12th Prime Ministers' Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States. Vice Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping introduced the relevant situation and achievements.
Cheng Guoping said that it was Premier Li Keqiang's debut on the stage of the SCO after he took office. Under the background of the world actively discussing the new development of China's reform and opening-up and the new ideas of China's neighbouring diplomacy, the international community paid high attention to Li Keqiang's visit.
Premier Li Keqiang stayed in Uzbekistan for merely 28 hours. But, during his attendance of the Prime Ministers' Meeting, Premier Li had frequent interactions with leaders of various countries, and attended ten multilateral activities, demonstrating the efficient and pragmatic work style of China's new leadership.
Cheng Guoping said that at the Prime Ministers' Meeting, Premier Li Keqiang put forward the six-point proposal covering three major fields, which is an innovation on ideas of the SCO development. For the 12 years since the establishment of the SCO, the pragmatic cooperation among the SCO member states has continued deepening, with increasingly wider range and substantial achievements, and has showed great potentials and unique advantages.
In the face of the complex changes in the political and economic situation of today's world, the SCO is in a critical period of continuing with the past success and opening up the future, and the common aspirations of the SCO member states to seek cooperation and development and to promote stability are increasingly strengthened. Further coordinating the interests of all parties, building consensus and activating pragmatic cooperation have become the most urgent problems facing the development of the SCO. Just as Premier Li Keqiang said at the large-scale talks of the Prime Ministers' Meeting, "We should maintain tradition in changes, adhere to the principles, and expand ways of cooperation to jointly meet the challenges."
Premier Li Keqiang put forward the six-point proposal on deepening the prioritized pragmatic cooperation among the SCO member states, namely deepening security cooperation, speeding up road connectivity, promoting trade and investment facilitation, strengthening financial cooperation, advancing ecological and energy cooperation, and expanding people-to-people and cultural exchanges.
The proposal mentioned above includes 21 specific proposals for cooperation, focuses on the three key areas of security, economy and humanities, and aims to create a safe, convenient, mutually beneficial and green development environment and to promote transformation and upgrading of the SCO pragmatic cooperation. Among them, setting up China-Eurasia Economic Cooperation Fund, advancing the establishment of SCO Development Bank, establishing SCO Information Sharing Platform for Environmental Protection, carrying out cooperation in the fields of nuclear power and new energies, and other proposals are all major measures put forward by China to focus on the long-term development of the SCO, and will certainly greatly enrich the contents of the pragmatic cooperation among the SCO member states.
Cheng Guoping said that the "six-point proposal" shows China's image as a responsible big country, and reflects China's determination of relying on the SCO to promote the regional integration construction, to build the Silk Road economic belt, and to build regional and national community of destiny and interests. It has received positive responses from leaders of various countries.
Cheng Guoping said that under the joint efforts between China and other various parties, the Prime Ministers' Meeting has made a number of achievements. In addition to the Joint Communique, there are two documents that have special significance for the SCO to further carry out pragmatic cooperation.
One is the Joint Declaration of the Heads of Government (Prime Ministers) of the SCO Member States on Further Development of Cooperation in the Field of Transport. It is the first time that the prime ministers of the six SCO member states issued an individual declaration on cooperation in a specialized field. The Joint Declaration stresses the importance of promoting the SCO cooperation in transportation, puts forward the necessity of tapping potentials of the member states in transit transport, and calls to raise the level of mutual investment and trade cooperation through connectivity.
The Joint Declaration points out that the current priority of the SCO is to sign the Intergovernmental Agreement of the SCO Member States on Facilitation of International Road Transport as soon as possible, setting up specific goals for cooperation in the field of transport and embodying the unanimous understanding of the six member states on the fundamental economic principle of "one needs to build roads first in order to be prosperous". It will certainly produce a positive influence on speeding up cooperation in the transportation infrastructure construction, as well as in the transportation field in the region.
Premier Li Keqiang had an extensive exchange of views with prime ministers of the member states during the meeting, and proposed that connectivity is the foundation for SCO to deepen pragmatic cooperation, which plays an important influence in passing the Joint Declaration.
The second is the Resolution on Further Activities on Setting up the Development Bank and Development Fund (Special Account) of the SCO approved by prime ministers of various countries. The establishment of the above-mentioned bank and fund was proposed by China at the SCO Beijing Summit in 2012, and aimed to build continuously stable multilateral financing safeguard mechanisms for the SCO to offer financial support to major cooperative projects. It has received wide support from the member states, and a working team of experts was set up. The resolution passed by the prime ministers this time confirmed the work achievements by various experts at the previous stage, and proposed to continue to speed up work on negotiating the basic principles of establishing the above-mentioned mechanisms, and other issues, making a firm step forward towards the goal of establishing the two mechanisms.
Cheng Guoping said the Premier Li Keqiang extensively worked with leaders of the member states, promoting the development of bilateral relations between China and the member states. It may be called "bilateral engagement at a multilateral stage, and friends, old and new, renew friendship". As the host country of the Prime Ministers' Meeting, Uzbekistan attaches great importance to Premier Li Keqiang's visit. Uzbek Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyayev went to the airport in person to welcome Premier Li Keqiang. As soon as Premier Li arrived in Uzbekistan, Uzbek President Islam Karimov had a cordial meeting with Li at his office and entertained Li with a one-to-one banquet. Both sides had a thorough exchange of views on bilateral relations, regional situation, international hot spot issues, and other issues for more than three hours. After the dinner party, President Islam Karimov paid no attention to the cold winter night, accompanied Premier Li all the way to the doorway of his office, and was reluctant to say goodbye. Premier Li said that although it is winter now, I can still feel the warmth of the spring.
China and Uzbekistan signed a number of cooperative documents, laying a more solid foundation for both sides to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation. Among them, the agreement of preferential loans provided by China for the construction of Uzbekistan's north-south railway is of special significance to the development of the Uzbek economy. At the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyayev was the first to applaud right after the name of the document was read, setting off a round of applause. As the hometown of the two heads of state, Xi'an and Samarkand have signed an agreement to build friendly city relationship, vividly reflecting the high level of bilateral strategic partnership, and opening up a new model of regional cooperation promoting pragmatic cooperation.
Premier Li Keqiang met with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev again after the China-Russia Prime Ministers' Regular Meeting in Oct. this year, and both sides had an exchange of views on international and regional situation, the China-Russia relations, especially the progress of important projects in the bilateral pragmatic fields, fully embodying the high level of China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership.
It was the first time that Premier Li Keqiang met with Kazakh Prime Minister Serik Akhmetov, Kyrgyz Prime Minister Zhantoro Satybaldiyev, and Tajik Prime Minister Kokhir Rasulzoda, but all felt like old friends with each other at the first meeting. They had in-depth and sincere talks on bilateral relations and regional situation, and built a good working relationship and personal friendship.
Cheng Guoping said that Premier Li Keqiang introduced China's current economic development situation at the meeting, firmly sent a positive message, and sang the theories of light and opportunities of China's development. Li showed to the whole world that as an important driving force of the global economic growth, China not only has made great contributions to the world economy, but also is willing to jointly create development opportunities with more countries and to share development dividends. The Prime Ministers' Meeting this time coincided with the conclusion of the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee and with a critical period of important deployment for China to comprehensively deepen reform. What economic policies China will take and how China will see and promote the SCO pragmatic cooperation have received high attention from the international community.
Premier Li Keqiang introduced China's current economic situation in his speech at the meeting, made a report on the important measures by the Chinese government to deal with the downward pressure on the economy, and expressed determination in realizing approximately 7.5% in GDP growth, in keeping CPI growth range within 3.5%, and in other major goals of the economic and social development. Li elaborated on important ideas of further deepening the reform of the economic system, letting the market play a decisive role in the allocation of resources, and giving better play to the role of the government.
Premier Li Keqiang stressed that taking care of China's business is an important contribution to the world, and the measures taken by China are responsible for China, as well as for the world. China is willing to share the new opportunities brought by mutual development with various countries, and to jointly create a better tomorrow for the SCO. It no doubt boosts the confidence of all parties of the SCO in further pushing forward pragmatic cooperation, and also is a vivid reflection of China's policy of creating an amicable, secure and prosperous neighborhood, as well as China's neighbouring diplomatic concept of closeness, honesty, kindness and inclusiveness.
Cheng Guoping said that although Premier Li Keqiang's trip to Uzbekistan was short, it was a journey of cooperation, confidence and friendship. Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, means the "Stone City" in Uzbek. We believe that Premier Li's visit will certainly play a turn-stone-into-gold role in the development of the SCO and the bilateral relations between China and relevant countries.