Harmony for common good

The SCO's contributions to regional security, stability and prosperity stem from its vision of governance based on extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits

June 15 marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Twenty-five years ago, the heads of state of the six founding nations — China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan — followed the pulse of the times to sign the Declaration on the Establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, opening a new chapter for regional countries in their shared pursuit of stability and development.

To date, the SCO has grown from six founding members into a family of 27 countries across Asia, Europe and Africa. From its initial focus on regional security, its agenda has expanded to include politics, economic affairs and people-to-people exchanges. Today, it stands as the world's largest regional cooperation organization in both land area and population, and a key multilateral platform to ensure security and stability and to drive shared prosperity.

The SCO has remained true to the Shanghai Spirit, which is defined by mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development. Its vision of "harmony in diversity and common development" aligns closely with the purposes of the United Nations Charter and shares the same lineage as the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, offering unique Eastern wisdom to global governance.

Over the past 25 years, the SCO has forged a new path for regional cooperation that diverges from traditional geopolitical rivalries. It has pioneered an entirely different model of partnership, where countries with divergent social systems and development paths can achieve solidarity, win-win openness and inclusive mutual learning. It has set an example for regional and global cooperation, and blazed a trail — theoretically and practically — toward a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for humanity.

China has left an indelible mark on the SCO's growth and evolution. As a founding member and key participant, China has always prioritized the SCO in its neighborhood diplomacy, steering it toward a new stage of high-quality development defined by greater solidarity, stronger coordination, enhanced vitality and more impactful collective action.

China's wisdom has kept the Shanghai Spirit alive and relevant. In 2001, as host of the first SCO Summit, China drew on the experience of the "Shanghai Five" mechanism to propose the Shanghai Spirit, and it has since become the SCO's core value and code of conduct. As the international landscape has grown increasingly complex, China has systematically put forward five perspectives for development, security, cooperation, civilization and global governance, which can be the guiding principles for building an SCO community with a shared future. It has further championed the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, the Global Civilization Initiative and the Global Governance Initiative. Together, these concepts and initiatives have breathed new life into the Shanghai Spirit.

China's solutions have steadily upgraded the SCO's institutions and mechanisms. Beijing promoted the establishment of the SCO Secretariat and the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure, and initiated the drafting of the Treaty on Long-Term Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation Between the Member States of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, laying a solid legal foundation for SCO-related countries to live in friendship and never become enemies. With strong impetus from China, the bloc successively adopted a medium- to long-term development road map and two 10-year development strategies, clarifying cooperation principles, tasks and objectives, and pointing the way forward.

China's impetus has actively advanced bilateral and multilateral cooperation within the SCO framework. Over the past 25 years, China has held the rotating presidency five times, providing crucial momentum for the steady and sustained development of a community with a shared future for the organization.

During its 2024-25 presidency, China delivered 313 work outcomes, including hosting 187 events, adopting 90 outcome documents and proposing 36 cooperation initiatives covering politics, security, economy and trade, connectivity, technological innovation and green industries. The 2025 Tianjin Summit — the largest in SCO history — helped cement growing solidarity and mutual trust among SCO-related countries, secure tangible progress on security cooperation, advance integrated development that benefits all parties, and foster ever-closer people-to-people and cultural exchanges.

In the contemporary global landscape, unilateralism, acts of power politics and bullying are persistently eroding the foundations of multilateralism. The international community thus expects the SCO to assume greater responsibility — to practice true multilateralism, to reform and improve the global governance system, and to make more SCO contributions to regional and world peace, stability, development and prosperity.

The SCO's contributions stem from its vision of global governance based on extensive consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits. SCO countries have transcended outdated concepts such as the clash of civilizations, Cold War mentality and zero-sum games. Instead, they practice the essence of multilateralism. As Chinese President Xi Jinping said in a video speech at the World Economic Forum Virtual Event of the Davos Agenda in January 2021, "multilateralism is about having international affairs addressed through consultation and the future of the world decided by everyone working together". In particular, the innovative model of the SCO Plus Meeting has significantly enhanced the organization's inclusiveness and representativeness on global issues, raising greater expectations from the international community for its role in improving the global governance system.

The SCO's contributions also come from its collective voice in defense of international fairness and justice. From the situation in Afghanistan to the US-Israel-Iran conflict, the SCO countries actively coordinate to resolve international and regional hotspots, providing political and diplomatic platforms and channels for dialogue and communication. Across a wide range of issues — from safeguarding the security, stability and diversification of supply chains to uniting for global justice, harmony and development — the SCO has sounded a powerful call of the times on major challenges concerning humanity's future and destiny — a call for unity over division, cooperation over confrontation, and justice over hegemony.

Another source of the SCO's contributions lies in its ability to rally broad support from all quarters. As a collective body of emerging markets and developing nations, the SCO has become an important platform for advancing South-South cooperation, helping Global South members better protect their sovereignty, pursue development and prosperity, and improve national governance. The implementation of Chinese initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative within the SCO and other multilateral frameworks has enhanced mutual trust and exchanges across different societies and peoples, providing greater support for addressing global challenges.

At present, the world is experiencing both transformation and turbulence. With 25 years of traversing hardships and challenges, the SCO has come of age and entered a new phase. Its mission to safeguard regional security and stability has become ever more vital, and its responsibility to promote national development and rejuvenation even more weighty.

Standing at a new starting point, SCO countries have a greater need than ever to carry forward the Shanghai Spirit, uphold the vision of "harmony in diversity and common development", consolidate political mutual trust, safeguard common security, promote shared prosperity and strengthen people-to-people exchanges — while enhancing institutional effectiveness — toward building a community with a shared future, promoting regional security, stability and development, and advancing a fairer and more equitable global governance system.

The author is the deputy secretary-general of the Council on China-Russia Strategic Coordination at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The author contributed this article to China Watch, a think tank powered by China Daily. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

Contact the editor at editor@chinawatch.cn.