The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has great potential for further growth and the group will have increasingly greater clout in the world, said Kyrgyz foreign minister.

"As a major player in shaping modern international relations, the SCO has been effectively safeguarding peace and stability across the Euroasian region," Kadyrbek Sarbaev said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

On the SCO summit scheduled for June 15-16 in Yekaterinburg, Russia. Sarbaev said the SCO, which has adopted an open-minded attitude since its birth in 2001, has expressed the hope for close dialogue and cooperation with relevant nations and regions, as well as international organizations.

It has established cooperative relations with many groups, such as the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Eurasian Economic Community (EEC), CIS Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) in recent years, just to name a few.

Noting that the SCO enjoys high international prestige and broad prospect, Sarbaev said it has now four observers, namely Mongolia, India, Pakistan and Iran, with Belarus and Sri Lanka currently applying for the status as dialogue partners.

Several other countries have expressed wish for full SCO membership, an indication of its unique charms, he added.

On regional security, Sarbaev said that "to safeguard regional security and stability has always been a SCO's basic function."

"The combat against the 'three evil forces' of terrorism, separatism and extremism remains the major task since the SCO was founded," he said, describing the three forces as real threats to SCO member states.

In the first half of this year, the group successfully completed a joint anti-terrorism military exercise in Kyrgyzstan, held a special conference on Afghanistan and other meetings on security issues.

These were aimed to deal with cross-border security threats and challenges, and ensure better cooperation among member states.

On the upcoming SCO annual summit, the foreign minister said member states are expected to sign a series of documents on enhancing security cooperation, so as to better coordinate their joint combat against the "three evil forces", drug trafficking as well as organized crimes to promote regional security and stability.

Sarbaev said Kyrgyzstan has always maintained that extensively broadening and deepening multilateral cooperation on trade and investment among members should be taken as the groundwork for SOC's constant self-improvement and development.

Therefore, the plan for implementing multilateral trade and economic cooperation program reached last October by SCO members is of great significance, he added.

Sarbaev also called on the SCO member states to adapt themselves to the changes caused by the global financial crisis, and forge closer economic and trade partnership among themselves by making full use of their great economic potential.

On cultural cooperation, Sarbaev noted that great progress has been made in this regard within SCO framework. He called for closer exchange and cooperation among social organizations and youth groups of the SCO member states.

He pledged more concrete measures and concerted efforts to keep on the progress in cultural exchange and cooperation.

Sarbaev said joining the SCO represented a historic opportunity for Kyrgyzstan, adding that the SCO has taken into full account the practical interest of each member state, and offered sound basis for the steady development of Kyrgyzstan.

Kyrgyzstan will continue to actively participate in the SCO activities, to consolidate the SCO international status and boost the social and economic development and cultural exchange among its members, said Sarbaev.

He described China as a friendly neighbor and reliable partner of Kyrgyzstan , noting that China, as one of the founding members, has served both as an active participant of the group, and an advocate of many of its principles and proposals.

He said China, with rapid and steady social and economic growth, bigger influence in the world, has played a leading role in the SOC.

China is capable of contributing more to safeguarding security, boosting economic and trade development and enhancing cultural exchange in the region, Sarbaev concluded.

(Xinhua News Agency June 13, 2009)