DUSHANBE, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- China is helping transform the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) from a security-focused regional body into a comprehensive platform -- one spanning economy, technology, transport and finance, a Tajik economist said.
In an interview with Xinhua, Rahmon Ulmasov, a professor at the Russian-Tajik (Slavonic) University, described China's 2024-2025 rotating presidency as one of the most productive periods in the SCO history.
During its presidency, China hosted over 200 events, issued 92 outcome documents, and put forward 36 major cooperation initiatives, Ulmasov noted. "The SCO has gone beyond being solely a regional platform and is gaining global significance."
China has become one of SCO's primary economic engines, said Ulmasov, highlighting SCO leaders' approval of a development strategy for the organization in the 2026-2035 period and the member states' decision to establish an SCO development bank at the SCO summit held last year in China's port city of Tianjin.
These measures are particularly important for Central Asia, where there is significant demand for financing in transport, energy, water management and digital infrastructure, he said, noting that once the bank becomes fully operational, it could provide countries in the region with new sources of long-term financing.
On the logistics front, Ulmasov said that Belt and Road cooperation on infrastructure is fostering closer transport, trade and logistics links among SCO member states, particularly in Central Asia.
New cross-border routes are transforming Central Asia from a landlocked area in the Eurasian transport grid into a dynamic hub connecting East and West, as well as North and South, he said.
The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway could also become a new driver of regional economic development, said the Tajik expert. The project is designed to create a new land route connecting China and Central Asia and shorten the existing China-Europe route by about 900 km, providing an alternative to traditional transport routes.
Looking ahead, Ulmasov said the SCO is embarking on a new development stage with cooperation expanding beyond traditional trade, transport and conventional energy to technological modernization in green energy, artificial intelligence, the digital economy and emerging industries.
China is aligning its own modernization drive with the development needs of fellow SCO member states, creating a new model of cooperation that combines Chinese technology, local resources, joint production and access to regional markets, he said.
China, he said, is offering SCO members more than a share in its economic momentum; it is offering a way into the high-tech supply chains of the future.
As these initiatives take root, he added, the SCO could become a premier hub for the region's green and digital economic transformation. ■