Expert highlighted importance of Belarus' accession to SCO

Belarus' accession to the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation will help the country not only in expanding foreign trade, but also in ensuring its security and many other aspects – as noted by the Dean of the Journalism Faculty at the Belarusian State University, Aleksei Belyaev, in his talk with Alfa Radio

The MPs have ratified a memorandum on Belarus' obligations to join the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation, with which the country has been working since 2010 – primarily, as a dialogue partner and later as an observer.

“Minsk hosted a large-scale conference on Eurasian security recently, and I was among its participants. The theses were voiced that Belarus is already at the SCO door. That is, representatives of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation and its executive bodies openly stated that the procedures have been launched, they are progressing as expected, and no one is going to stop them," Mr. Belyaev noted.

According to the expert, the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation means not only the economy at present. “SCO was created as a regional organisation for security and overcoming existing contradictions, and it united the countries that had such contradictions. Thanks to SCO, they managed to settle them and resolve conflict situations. Therefore, I think that Belarus’ accession to the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation will open up new economic opportunities, the possibility of concluding new contracts, agreements and expanding foreign trade," he added.

Moreover, Mr. Belyaev stressed the security aspect of SCO, “This envisages getting support at the international level from serious states – such as China, for example. SCO also creates an opportunity to convey our point of view more clearly to our allies. The Shanghai spirit of co-operation is a very important point: it opens up additional channels for communication and exchange of opinions. It is very useful for Belarus, especially considering the dangers that exist on our borders. Opponents on the other side of the border will be afraid to plan any actions against our republic if they see that we have the support of such a huge number of countries with serious military potential.”