Aerial photo taken on April 16, 2018 shows the cityscape of Qingdao, the host city of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit, in east China's Shandong Province. (Xinhua/Guo Xulei)
SCO Secretary General Rashid Alimov described the bloc as "a paradigm of the peaceful co-existence of nations with different powers and various political systems and cultures."
"Within the group, no one dominates, wins or loses, and agreements are reached through negotiation and consultation," Alimov said.
"The 'Shanghai Spirit' bears similar elements embodied in the vision of a community of a shared future for humanity and the global governance principle of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration, and will continue to deliver strong vitality," said Li Yongquan, head of the China Society for Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies.
START OF NEW JOURNEY
About a year ago, China took over the rotating presidency of the SCO.
During China's SCO presidency, more than 120 activities have been held as of the end of last month, covering a wide spectrum including politics, economy, security, people-to-people exchanges and external exchanges.
"Seventeen years on, both China and the SCO have undergone profound changes, and both have seen a rise in their international influence," said Zhang Lili, a professor with China Foreign Affairs University.
"While moving closer to center stage, China will make a greater contribution to the SCO development at the summit," the professor said.
The summit is expected to ratify a five-year outline for the implementation of the "Treaty on Long-term Good Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation" to set the direction for SCO cooperation in the next phase, and approve a host of resolutions and cooperation deals covering areas including security, economy and trade, as well as people-to-people exchanges.
Also, by touching on major international and regional issues, the summit will be an important chapter for the improvement of global governance and the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.
At a meeting of the SCO Council of Foreign Ministers last month, the ministers noted that the world was rapidly developing and undergoing unprecedented change with the emergence of a multipolar world order, an increasingly globalised world economy and enhanced connectivity and interdependence between states.
They stressed the need to follow multilateral approaches for resolving the issues the world is facing, and respond to various threats and challenges by improving global governance based on a collective approach.
Li Yongquan said he believes that by offering constructive solutions to regional cooperation and global governance, the "SCO strength" will add vigor to humanity's progress.
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