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China calls on international co-op on Afghanistan

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-28 10:40

MOSCOW -- The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has devoted itself to safeguarding regional peace and stability, and is ready to cooperate with Afghanistan in solving its problems, Deputy Chinese Foreign Minister Song Tao said here on Friday.

The international community has paid great tribute to the SCO in view of its increasingly important role in regional affairs, said Song, who was attending the Moscow conference on Afghanistan.

It takes the efforts of the Afghan government and people, as well as support from the international community, for the war-ravaged country to resume peace, stability and development, the Chinese diplomat said.

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The SCO will actively cooperate with the Afghan government in fighting terrorism, drug trafficking and transnational crimes so as to safeguard regional peace and stability, Song said.

Song called on the parties to support the United Nations' leading role in Afghanistan's reconstruction, to aid Afghanistan in its elections, and to improve and enhance regional cooperation mechanisms.

The deputy foreign minister said China has written off a loan of 75 million US dollars it provided to Afghanistan.

Song also exchanges views with representatives of the conference participants on international and regional issues of common concern. The parties issued a joint declaration and an action plan at the end of the meeting.

The Moscow conference on Afghanistan was held under the auspices of the SCO, a regional security organization comprising Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Also attending the meeting were representatives of Group of Eight members, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Iran, the United Nations, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the EU and NATO.