SCO leaders to discuss at summit regional security, terror fight

TASHKENT, June 11 (Itar-Tass) - Leaders of the member countries of the
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) will discuss at working meetings
of the SCO summit on Friday regional security, the fight against terrorism
and countering drug trafficking.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Tashkent on Thursday. He
has already held separate meetings with Chinese President Hu Jintao,
President of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan
Nazarbayev, as well as with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari who is
present at the forum as an observer.
A separate discussion at the summit will be devoted to the situation
in Afghanistan. "The meeting participants intend to discuss issues of the
further coordination of efforts within the SCO framework in this sphere,
development of multilateral interaction with the Afghan government, other
concerned partners in the sphere of security and economic cooperation,
countering the Afghan drug trafficking," Russian presidential aide Sergei
Prikhodko told Itar-Tass. "The issue of which specifically assistance
could be provided by the SCO member states for stabilisation both of the
economic and political situation in this country will be discussed in
detail," he added.
A diplomatic source did not rule out that at the narrow-format talks
the summit participants will touch upon the further prospects for
Afghanistan's political development. "The SCO member countries for known
reasons are interested in the stabilisation of the situation in
Afghanistan, the development of a complex strategic approach is in
progress," the source noted.
The forum participants will also not overlook the Kyrgyzstan issue,
however, no special statement is planned to be adopted on this matter. A
Kremlin source who told this Itar-Tass noted, however, that "if proposals
to adopt such statement are made, it may appear." "I think, however, that
it would be right to adopt any statements on this matter after elections
are held in this country," he added.
Prikhodko said that "in accordance with the coordinated approach of
the SCO member states, Acting Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbayev will
represent Kyrgyzstan in Tashkent."
The forum participants are also to atop the regulation on the order of
admission of new members in the organisation. It has been worked out by
Russian experts and coordinated by all the three sides.
Itar-Tass has learnt that according to the draft regulation, "a state
seeking membership in the Organisation should belong to the Euro-Asian
region, have diplomatic relations with all SCO member states, have the
status of observer in the SCO or partner in the SCO dialogue, maintain
active trade-economic and humanitarian relations with SCO member states,
not to be under UN sanctions, it should not be in a state of armed
conflict with another state or states."
Conspicuous in this connection is the absence at the forum of Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, although he has regularly attended SCO
summits in recent years as observer the status of which was granted in
2006. "Iran traditionally takes part I n SCO summits as an observer, and
the Iranian delegation is expected in Tashkent, it is not ruled out that
it will be headed by the foreign minister," a diplomatic source told
Itar-Tass. According to him, "The summit participants are not planning to
adopt a separate statement on Iran, the same as on the situation on the
Korean Peninsula."
-0-ezh