LAHORE: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday assured Pakistan’s full support in the fulfillment of the purposes and objectives of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), under his stewardship.
He hoped that all SCO members would continue to work together for building peace, enhancing international solidarity and cooperation.
The prime minister was talking to Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Ambassador Zhang Ming who called on him.
The prime minister also reaffirmed Pakistan’s strong commitment to the principles of the SCO Charter and the “Shanghai Spirit.”
He highlighted the current global challenges manifested in the high fuel and food prices and the resultant food insecurity as well as economic and financial difficulties for a large number of countries including SCO members.
Appreciating the comprehensive development agenda of SCO, the prime minister emphasized that the core purpose of the Organization remained the growth and prosperity of the SCO region and how well the SCO leaders were responding to the aspirations and ambitions of their people to have better standards of living.
He underlined Pakistan’s priorities and national development goals as well as important areas of interest within the SCO framework of cooperation – including trade and economy; connectivity & transport; poverty alleviation; energy; agriculture and food security; climate change; security; information technology; digitalization; and cultural and people-to-people linkages.
The prime minister underlined the need for developing appropriate funding mechanisms to promote intra-SCO trade as well as development initiatives.
Stressing the enhancement of transport and communication links, the prime minister underscored the importance of the connectivity agenda and, in this regard, also highlighted that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) could serve as a useful model in its facilitation.
The prime minister also shared his perspective on a number of specific regional and global security issues as well as SCO’s role in promoting stability in the region and beyond.
In this context, he appreciated the work of SCO-RATS where Pakistan, together with other member states, was playing an active role in countering common security challenges.
The SCO secretary general expressed his sincere gratitude to the government and leadership of Pakistan for arranging his visit before the upcoming SCO Council of Foreign Ministers and Heads of State meetings in Uzbekistan.
The secretary general lauded Pakistan’s constructive contributions to SCO’s work and activities across all domains and thanked the prime minister for the guidance provided with regard to SCO’s priorities and endeavours in the future.
He also highlighted the invitation to the prime minister to attend the SCO summit in Samarkand in September 2022 to which Prime Minister Sharif responded that he was looking forward to participate in the summit.
The prime minister also warmly felicitated the secretary-general on taking up his important assignment.
SCO is an 8-member trans-regional multilateral Organization, based on the “Shanghai Spirit” which stands for mutual trust and respect, equality, respect for diverse civilizations, and pursuit of shared development.
In the two decades, since its establishment, SCO has become a major international platform representing 41% of the world population with a 23% share in global GDP.
The four-day visit of the SCO secretary general provided an important opportunity for consultations at the highest level and greater understanding of Pakistan’s expectations from the Organization.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday directed the provincial governments to remain alert in the wake of continuing monsoon rainfall which could trigger flash floods in different parts of the country.
The prime minister in a message to the chief minister Sindh said that the federal government would provide all possible support to the provincial government in this difficult situation. The recent rainy spell is lashing Karachi for the last few days, resulting in the monsoon deluge.
The prime minister also directed the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to fully assist the provincial governments and the departments concerned.
He said the protection of the properties and lives of the people in the low-lying areas should be ensured.
The prime minister also desired that the elected representatives should supervise the rescue and relief activities launched by the relevant departments.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif Sunday wished President of the United States Joe Biden a speedy and complete recovery from Covid-19 infection.
On his Twitter handle, the prime minister posted “I wish President Biden a speedy and complete recovery from corona.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had told media that president Biden was experiencing “very mild symptoms” and would continue to carry out all his duties in isolation.
In a separate tweet 79-year-old president Biden said he was “doing great” and “keeping busy”.
The White House informed that the president tested positive for Covid on Thursday, and had been fully vaccinated and twice boosted. – APP
