Shanghai Co-op Economic Forum scheduled for August 16-17 in Uzbekistan

Tashkent: The second Economic Forum of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is set to take place on August 16-17 in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent, the Uzbek ministry of investments and foreign trade said on Wednesday.
“Tashkent will host the Second Economic Forum under the current presidency of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization,” the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry noted that the inaugural economic forum that took place in June 2021 in Tajikistan proved to be an effective platform for dialogue, which promoted development and stronger partnership within the SCO.
“The main goal of the event is to focus the attention of the parties on the problems and prospects of mutually beneficial trade and economic, investment, cultural and humanitarian cooperation, to devise meaningful actions for enhancing ties in the SCO region,” the statement said.
The attendees will take part in a plenary session, panel discussions, bilateral meetings, and will have a chance to establish business-to-business contacts to facilitate digital economy, green technologies and regional cooperation, among other topics.
The SCO is an international organization founded in 2001 by China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Russia and Uzbekistan. The SCO’s observer countries include Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia, while the partner countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Turkey. At the summit in Dushanbe in September 2021, the SCO launched the procedure for admitting Iran to the organization and granting a dialogue partner status to Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. In July, Belarus submitted its application to join the SCO as a full-fledged member. (UNI/SPUTNIK)