Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) has potential to enhance regional peace and stability.

The prime minister’s remarks came as he chaired the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the SCO at the Jinnah Convention Centre, Islamabad.**

Addressing the meeting, the PM said that it gave him immense pleasure to welcome “our distinguished guests to Islamabad, the green and beautiful capital of Islamabad.”

“Your presence here today underscores our shared commitment to fulfilling the aspirations of our people to ensure collective security and to enhance mutually beneficial cooperation for sustainable development and prosperity of the SCO region,” he added.

“Together, we have the potential to drive socio-economic progress, enhance regional peace and stability, and to improve the quality of life for our citizens,” the premier said.

SCO sidelines: PM Shehbaz holds bilateral meetings with member states

PM Shehbaz expressed his hope for “wonderful outcomes that will emerge from our in-depth deliberations”.

He futher said that the SCO platform is a “beacon of multilateralism”.

“I stand resolute in the belief that we possess not only the potential but the collective well to forge a future more prosperous, stable and secure for our people — a future inclusive and reflective of shared aspirations of all member states.”

He called upon the SCO members to work together for a well-connected, integrated and prosperous region.

He said that Pakistan supports all SCO connectivity initiatives and underscored the importance of the establishment of a robust SCO connectivity framework “which should not merely boost regional trade but also advance the vision of connected Euro-Asia”.

Expansion of China’s Belt and Road Initiative

PM Shehbaz said that projects such as Belt and Road Initiative and the International North South Transport Corridor should be expanded focusing on developing road, rail and digital infrastructure.

“We should not look at such projects through the narrow political prism and invest in our collective connectivity capacities which are crucial to advancing the shared vision of an economically integrated region.”

He added that CPEC would also help enhance cooperation, saying that 40 percent of the world’s population lived in SCO’s 10 full member states.

‘Poverty a moral imperative’

The premier also spoke on poverty, saying it was not just an economic issue but a “moral imperative that demands collective attention with millions living in poverty within the SCO region”.

PM Shehbaz said Pakistan facilitated several seminars and webinars aimed at poverty alleviation.

He called for collective efforts to address the root causes of poverty and uplift the quality of life for peoples of the region.

Essential to realize great opportunities of a stable Afghanistan

On Afghanistan, the PM said it was not only desirable but also essential to fully realising the great opportunities of a stable Afghanistan.

He urged the international community to step forward with urgent humanitarian support for Afghanistan.

He also called upon Afghan interim government to ensure that their soil is not misused for terrorism against its neighbors by any entity.

Following PM Shehbaz, India’s Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar and Iran’s Trade Minister Seyyed Mohammad Atabek also addressed the conference.

The meeting was attended by the heads of government of eight member states. Iran and India will be represented by their trade and external affairs ministers, respectively, after Iranian first vice president Mohammad Reza Aref had to pull out at the last minute due to the evolving regional situation requiring his presence in Tehran.

On Tuesday, PM Shehbaz hosted a welcome dinner for the dignitaries from various member states on the first day of the two-day summit.

Before the dinner, PM Shehbaz welcomed and shook hands with the dignitaries, including India’s Foreign Minister Jaishankar.

The meeting of the SCO, a Eurasian security and political group formed in 2001 by Russia and China, was the highest profile event hosted by Pakistan in years.

The SCO meeting discussed ongoing cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said. Observers believe the bloc seeks to counter Western influence in the region.

Meanwhile, the security in the federal capital was beefed up with all the roads leading to the Red Zone shut, shops and hotels remained closed, bringing life in the city to a complete standstill.

Over 12,674 personnel including capital police, paramilitary forces, and Rangers, have been deployed in city’s three tiers for protection. Over 12,674 personnel, 6,963 capital police personnel, 1,500 Frontier Constabulary (FC) personnel, 850 Sindh police, and 361 Rangers personnel were stationed at key locations.

To ensure security during the summit, all main roads leading to the Red Zone as well as to the city have been completely closed with concrete blocks.