Thesummitwitnessedamilestoneevent:IndiaandPakistanbecamenewmembersoftheSCO.Asitsmembershipgrows,theSCOnowcoversnotonlyCentralAsiabutalsoSouthAsia,WestAsiaandtheIndianOceanregion,withthecombinedpopulationofitsmembersrisingfrom20percentto40percentoftheworld鈥檚total,andtheGDPofitsmembersfrom16percenttoover20percent.TheSCOnowincludesfournuclearnations,whichshoulderacriticalresponsibilitytomaintainworldpeace.TheinclusionofnewmemberswillpromotecoordinationbetweentheSCOandBRICScountriesandhelpformanewplatformforconstructivedialoguebetweenChina,RussiaandIndia.
TheinclusionofIndiaandPakistan,however,alsomeansfuturechallengesfortheSCO.First,theborderconflictbetweenIndiaandPakistanwillbethebiggestuncertainty.Second,theSCO鈥檚principleofconsensusthroughconsultationindecisionmakingcouldbechallenged.Third,moreresponsibilitywillcomewithincreasedinternationalinfluenceresultingfromtheexpandedgeographicanddemographicrange,sotheSCOmembersmustbetterdeveloptheireconomiesandbenefittheirpeoples.Finally,greatermisinterpretation,doubtandvigilanceagainsttheSCOcouldariseintheWest.
PresidentXideclaredatthesummitthattheShanghaiSpirithasinspiredastrongsenseofsolidarity,whichensuresthegrowthoftheSCO,andthatwherethereissolidarity,happinesswillfollow.Aimingtoconvertchallengesintoopportunitieswithpersistentsolidarityandcoordination,theSCOmembers,oldornew,shouldsticktotheShanghaiSpiritandconformtotheCharteroftheSCOandtheTreatyonLong-termGoodNeighborliness,FriendshipandCooperation.
TheBeltandRoadForumforInternationalCooperation,heldinChinathisMay,wasanoverwhelmingsuccess.ConstructionoftheBeltandRoadisfacilitatingcoordinationofdevelopmentstrategiesbetweentheSCOmembers,suchastheEurasianEconomicUnion,headedbyRussia,andKazakhstan鈥檚BrightRoad.China鈥檚cooperationwithRussiaandKazakhstanhassetagoodexampleforotherSCOmembersandobserverstates.TheSCOhasbecomeamajorplatformforEurasiancountriestocoordinatedevelopmentstrategiesandjointlybuildtheBeltandRoad.IndiaisexpectedtoendorsetheBeltandRoadInitiativeafteritsinclusionintheSCOalongsidePakistan,whichwillamplifydevelopmentstrategycoordinationamongcountriesalongtheBeltandRoadroutes.
TheBeltandRoadInitiativewillacceleratemultilateralcooperationbetweentheSCOmembersviasigningandenforcementofanSCOtradefacilitationagreement,theformulationofaplanforcoordinateddevelopmentofhighroadsamongSCOmemberstates,andtheestablishmentofamechanismforsub-nationalcooperation.Inaddition,allianceswillbeformedinthefieldsofe-commerceandeconomicthinktanks,andtheestablishmentoftheSCODevelopmentBankwillbeexplored.TheBeltandRoadInitiativecreatesopportunitiesfortheSCOtothrive,andplansandmeasuresforcooperationwillpushforwardintegrationoftheSCO.
PresidentXialsonotedthatsecurityisaprerequisitefordevelopment,andthatwithoutsecurity,therewillbenodevelopmenttospeakof.Sincelastyear,violentterroristattackshavebeenfrequentinEurope,andterroristforcesincludingISISareexpanding,whichhasresultedinmountingpressureandincreasingchallengesforSCOmemberstates.ChinaadvocatesthesigningoftheSCOConventiononCombatingExtremism,whichwillhelpcurbtheexpansionofextremism,andmakesecuritycooperationandcoordinationbetweentheSCOmembersmoreefficient.ChinaiswillingtohosttheSCOjointcounterterrorismcyberexerciseagainandtoholdadefensesecurityforum.
ChinasupportstheSCOspeakingwithonevoiceoninternationalandregionalissues,whichwillhelptheorganizationplayabiggerandmoreconstructiveroleininternationalaffairs.TheSCOmemberswilldealwithchallengesthroughjointeffortsandbuildacommonhomeofsecurityandstability.
TheauthorisexecutivedirectoroftheCenterofSCOStudiesundertheChineseAcademyofSocialSciences.