Full text of Chinese President Xi Jinping's remarks at SCO joint press conference

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday attended a joint press conference at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit held in the coastal city of Qingdao.

The following is the full text of his remarks:

Xi Jinping, president of China that holds the rotating presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), addresses a joint press conference at the SCO summit in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, June 10, 2018. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kyrgyz President Sooronbay Jeenbekov, Pakistani President Mamnoon Hussain, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev also attended the press conference. [Photo: Xinhua]

Remarks by H.E. Xi Jinping

President of the People's Republic of China

At the SCO Joint Press Conference

Qingdao, June 10, 2018

Dear colleagues,

Friends from the press,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Good afternoon. It is my pleasure to meet with you.

Leaders of the member and observer states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and heads of international and regional organizations have gathered here at the beautiful coast of the Yellow Sea to draw up a blueprint for the SCO's development as it enters a new phase in history. We have had an in-depth exchange of views on major international and regional issues, and reached broad consensus.

During this summit, we have fully recognized the new progress made by our organization since the accession of India and Pakistan, issued several documents including the Qingdao Declaration of the Council of Heads of Member States of the SCO and the Joint Statement of the Heads of Member States of the SCO on Promoting Trade Facilitation, and ratified an action plan for implementing the Treaty on Long-Term Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation of the SCO Member States covering the next five years. We have agreed to abide by the goals and principles of the SCO Charter, carry forward the Shanghai Spirit of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development, and jointly pursue regional peace, stability and development by promoting good-neighborliness and friendship and deepening practical cooperation.

We share the view that the world is undergoing major development, transformation and adjustment. The trend toward multi-polarity and economic globalization is deepening and countries are increasingly interdependent. In the face of tortuous recovery of the world economy and various international and regional hotspot issues, countries are confronted with many common threats and challenges that no one can tackle alone. Only by enhancing solidarity and coordination and deepening partnerships featuring peace, cooperation, equality, openness, inclusiveness and mutual benefit will we be able to achieve lasting stability and development.

We hold that security is the foundation for sustainable development of the SCO. All parties, guided by the vision for common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, will jointly uphold regional security and stability by implementing the Shanghai Convention on Combating Terrorism, Separatism and Extremism, the Convention Against Terrorism, the Convention on Countering Extremism and other cooperation documents, promoting counter-terrorism intelligence exchanges and joint actions, strengthening legal foundation and capacity building, effectively combating terrorism, separatism, extremism, drug trafficking, transnational organized crime and cyber crime, and leveraging the role of the SCO-Afghanistan Contact Group.

We point out that economic globalization and regional integration are the compelling trend of our times. All parties will uphold the authority and efficacy of WTO rules, strengthen an open, inclusive, transparent, non-discriminatory and rules-based multilateral trading regime, and oppose trade protectionism of any form. All parties will continue to work in line with the principle of mutual benefit to improve regional economic cooperation arrangements, enhance the Belt and Road cooperation and complementarity of our respective development strategies, deepen cooperation in business, investment, finance, connectivity and agriculture, advance trade and investment facilitation, and foster new prospects for integrated development of the region to deliver benefits to our people and add fresh impetus to global growth.

We stress that the time-honored history and splendid culture of countries are the shared wealth of mankind. On the basis of respecting each other's cultural diversity and social values, all parties will continue to carry out effective multilateral and bilateral cooperation in culture, education, science and technology, environmental protection, health, tourism, youth, media and sports, with a view to promoting mutual learning between cultures and amity between the peoples.

We believe that it is very important for the SCO to expand international interactions and cooperation. On the basis of equality and mutual benefit, all parties will work to deepen cooperation with regional countries including SCO observer states and dialogue partners, and step up dialogue and exchanges with the UN and other international and regional organizations to jointly promote lasting peace and common prosperity of the world.

We agree that the Kyrgyz Republic will take over the rotating presidency of the SCO after this summit. All parties will actively support and cooperate with Kyrgyzstan in fulfilling its responsibilities as the President and ensuring the success of next year's summit.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Friends,

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the leaders of all countries and heads of international organizations for attending the summit. I am grateful for the vigorous support and assistance China has received during its presidency and in hosting this summit. My thanks also go to friends from the media for covering the progress of the SCO and the Qingdao Summit.

I am confident that with our joint efforts, the SCO will enjoy an even better future.

Thank you.