COOPERATION IN THE FIELD OF CULTURE WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANIZATION
As highly Esteemed President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov mentions: “For Turkmenistan, relations with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization form a crucial part of our national cooperation strategy. SCO members and observer countries have been longstanding traditional partners of Turkmenistan, serving as neighbors and friends”. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization was established in June 2001 in order to strengthen peace, security and stability in the region, as well as to develop economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation among Member states. Turkmenistan is invited at the highest level, as an honored guest to the summits of SCO. Turkmenistan considers relations with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in the strategic way. It was stated by the President of Turkmenistan, during his online speech at the meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO Member States as a guest of the chairman on July 4, 2023.
The President of Turkmenistan also emphasized that such an approach is justified historically, by age-old spiritual and cultural ties that strengthen relations between our peoples and states.
Cooperation with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, whose priority is the maintenance of peace, security and stability in the region, is of great importance for Turkmenistan. Turkmenistan has had a long history of working with the nations that make up this organization, and several significant joint projects have been completed or are in process of implementation. Specially, cooperation in the field of culture is vital for Turkmenistan and Member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. In addition, cooperation with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which enjoys great influence in the Eurasian continent, has a great prospects in the context of the development of interregional ties, serving the tasks for the full development of national integration into the system of world economic relations.
As mentioned before, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization also carries out projects in the cultural area between Member states. On 15 May 2024, the ministers of culture representing Member states of the SCO held their 21st meeting via videoconference. The participants exchanged views on cooperation opportunities among the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member states in cultural affairs, including the context of the intergovernmental agreement between the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member states to promote cultural cooperation.
The heads of delegations agreed to continue forging stronger ties and sharing their best practices on cultural matters. They also supported the idea of submitting joint applications for listing cultural monuments in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member states as UNESCO World Heritage sites. Additionally, they discussed issues of combatting trafficking of cultural artefacts and promoting expert exchanges.
The next Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Culture Ministers’ Meeting is scheduled to take place in 2025 in the People’s Republic of China.
Shasenem MEYLISOVA,
the 2nd year student of the Faculty of International Relations of the
Institute of International Relations of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.