Grouping: Cooperation has produced tangible results

Source: China Daily HK

Update: Jun 15th, 2026

The SCO was initially established to address shared security challenges. Over time, it has remained steadfast in its commitment to fostering a peaceful and stable environment that supports the development of all its member states. 

Xi has always emphasized the need to enhance the connection of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation with development strategies of SCO countries and regional cooperation initiatives, as well as efforts to facilitate trade and investment and keep industrial and supply chains stable and smooth. 

Such cooperation has produced tangible results. Official data showed that China has achieved, ahead of schedule, the target of bringing its cumulative trade with other SCO countries to more than $2.3 trillion, while nearly 14,000 kilometers of international land transport routes have been in operation among member states. 

Yang said China’s role in the SCO lies not only in putting forward ideas and building mechanisms, but also in providing public goods and platforms that help translate shared consensus into practical outcomes. 

Such efforts reflect China’s emphasis on practical results, as it links its own development with the growth of the SCO, he said. 

At last year’s Tianjin summit, China announced a series of measures, including plans to implement 100 “small and beautiful” livelihood projects in SCO member states where needed, provide 2 billion yuan ($295.7 million) in grant to SCO member states within the year, and build 10 Luban Workshops in member states over five years. 

A youth trends report released in May also pointed to positive perceptions of China’s role among young people in SCO member states, with more than 90 percent of respondents outside China saying that cooperation with China could have a positive impact on their countries’ development and modernization. 

Extended role 

Beyond regional cooperation, the SCO’s role has also extended to global governance. 

At the Tianjin “SCO Plus” meeting last year, Xi said that the SCO, guided by the Shanghai Spirit, has increasingly become a catalyst for the development and reform of the global governance system. 

He put forward the Global Governance Initiative at the meeting, calling on the organization to set an example in practicing the initiative, contribute SCO strength to world peace and stability, and demonstrate SCO responsibility in promoting global openness and cooperation. 

The organization’s growing reach has also drawn attention beyond its region. A March report by Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute said the Tianjin summit marked a strengthening of relations between Southeast Asia and the SCO, with some countries in the region viewing the organization as a useful economic network amid geopolitical turmoil. 

SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev was quoted by Kazakh media as saying that 20 more countries have expressed interest in cooperation with the organization, another sign of its growing appeal. 

Wang Wen, dean of the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, said China’s role in the SCO reflects its broader approach to global governance: supporting reform of the international system through dialogue and helping the SCO serve as a consensus-based platform that gives countries, especially small and medium-sized ones, more room for cooperation without forcing them to take sides.