Islamabad : Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday said that the country was keen to work with the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation's (SCO) member countries to enhance international solidarity and meet its goal, a local media reported.
During the meeting with SCO Secretary-General Ambassador Zhang Ming in Lahore, who is on a four-day visit to Pakistan, Sharif said that he hoped that all the SCO member states would continue to work together to build peace and enhance international solidarity and cooperation, Dawn reported.
Pakistan PM also reaffirmed its commitment to the principles of the SCO Charter and the "Shanghai Spirit." In the meeting, he highlighted the current global challenges like food insecurity and economic and financial difficulties for a large number of countries including SCO members, which are the result of the high fuel and food prices.
Appreciating the SCO's comprehensive development agenda, Sharif emphasized the purpose of the Organization remained the growth and prosperity of the SCO region. Seeks funding mechanisms for intra-organization trade, Sharif stressed the need for developing appropriate funding mechanisms to promote intra-SCO trade as well as development initiatives, reported Dawn.
He underlined Pakistan's priorities and national development goals in areas such as trade and economy, connectivity and transport, poverty alleviation, energy, agriculture, food security, climate change, security, information technology, and cultural linkage.
Pakistan PM appreciated the work of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of SCO (SCO-RATS), where Pakistan, along with other members, was playing an active role in countering common security challenges. Earlier, Pakistan Foreign Affairs Minister, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met the SCO Secretary-General Ambassador on Thursday and both sides noted that the Taliban must address international concerns about inclusivity, and respect for all Afghans' rights, especially girls' education.
Zhang Ming, in a meeting with Pakistani FM, urged the Taliban to address the concerns of the international community and uphold human rights.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani side, in the meeting on Friday also highlighted the need for increased engagement with the Taliban for regional peace, stability, and connectivity. The two countries reviewed the SCO's development agenda, reported Khaama Press.
This meeting came following the meeting of Zardari with Iran's Special Representative for Afghanistan Affairs where they discussed and stressed the need for an increased constructive engagement and cooperation with the Taliban government for regional stability, as per the media portal.
The SCO is an eight-nation trans-regional multilateral organization that includes Pakistan, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan. This year, Uzbekistan is chairing the SCO meeting and will be the organizer of all the events.
It has six dialogue partners, namely Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, and Sri Lanka. Uzbekistan took over the chairmanship of the organization from Tajikistan on September 17, 2021.