| |
 |
Uzbekistan joins "Shanghai Five"
|
THE “Shanghai Five”, a co-operative mechanism between China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan launched in 1996, decided yesterday to admit Uzbekistan as its sixth member, State media reported.
The heads of states of China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, gathered in Shanghai for a summit, announced the decision in a joint statement, the Xinhua News Agency said.
The statement also endorsed Uzbekistan as a co-founder of the Shanghai Co-operation Organization, which is expected to be launched during this week's summit, Xinhua said.
The 2001 “Shanghai Five Summit” is the sixth high-level meeting of Eurasian national leaders. Since the first meeting in 1996, the annual summit has developed from resolving border issues to strengthening regional security and improving co-operation in economic areas.
“Shanghai Five” refers to five Eurasian countries: China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. These five countries share 10 thousand kilometres of borders, with a joint area covering three-fifths of the Eurasian continent.(SD-Agencies)
|
|
|
|
