Ministers of justice laud outcomes of SCO Justice Ministers Meeting

The 10th Meeting of Ministers of Justice of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States was held in Shanghai on Sept 5. President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the meeting.

The attendees from SCO member states noted that Xi's congratulatory letter has set the direction for promoting international cooperation in legal and judicial fields. The fruitful outcomes of the meeting will help enhance pragmatic cooperation among SCO member states in an effective way and will promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind through the rule of law, they said.

Konstantin Chuychenko, minister of justice of Russia, said that the meeting provides a communication platform for SCO member states in deepening cooperation in legal and judicial administration fields. Over the past 10 years, such cooperation has grown increasingly rich, and the cooperation mechanism has continuously improved.

Noting that China has always attached great importance to the rule of law, he said China's achievements in this regard is truly impressive. Russia has reached new agreements with China, which will further deepen the two sides' cooperation and contribute to the building of a SCO community with a shared future.

Amin Hossein Rahimi, Iran's minister of justice, said that the congratulatory letter underscores that China attaches great importance to the mechanism of the Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice. In February this year, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi visited China and held talks with President Xi, marking a new chapter in the relations between the two countries.

Noting that the meeting further accelerates bilateral cooperation on legal services, he said that it will play an important role in promoting bilateral relations, particularly economic and trade ties. It will also help address economic and trade obstacles within the legal framework and better provide support for and protect multilateral investment.

Tajik Minister of Justice Muzaffar Ashouriyon said that it was his first time to attend the meeting since assuming office as the minister of justice. The mechanism of the Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice is a unique mechanism with a promising future, allowing SCO member states to contribute to the development of multilateral cooperation and propose a series of consensus-driven cooperation initiatives, he noted. There is also potential for further cooperation in judicial informatization and digitalization, providing new opportunities for the construction of the rule of law and the economic development in the SCO member countries, he said.

The SCO is a successful multilateral organization, said Kazakhstan's Minister of Justice Yeskarayev Azamat.  He noted the symbolic significance of both the first and 10th Meetings of SCO Ministers of Justice being held in China. It will lay a solid foundation for new cooperation among SCO member states.

Ikrom Gapurovich Saipov, deputy head of the Department of International Legal Cooperation and International Ratings of the Ministry of Justice of Uzbekistan, expressed gratitude for the meticulous arrangement made by China, adding that Uzbekistan has gained valuable insights from participating in the meeting, particularly in the field of judicial administrative innovation. He said the meeting will be a starting point for a new decade of judicial and legal cooperation among SCO member states.