President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the 22nd
Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO) as a special guest at the invitation of President Shavkat
Mirziyoyev of Uzbekistan on September 14.
Speaking at the meeting, President
Erdoğan said, “Türkiye’s position as a bridge between the east and the west
offers unparalleled opportunities. With this understanding, we stand ready for
cooperation in every area including security, the economy, and energy as well
as transportation, agriculture, and tourism. We will continue to contribute to
the ongoing political and economic processes within the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization.”
Extending gratitude to President Shavkat Mirziyoyev of
Uzbekistan for his hospitality and congratulating Iran on its membership in the
organization, President Erdoğan added, “Being the westernmost Asian and the
easternmost European country, Türkiye has an exceptional location. We have
millennium-long social, cultural and political ties with Asia. Since the launch
of our “Asia Anew” initiative in 2019, we have been working to strengthen all
aspects of our relations with Asia, our fatherland. We see the Shanghai
Cooperation Organization as Asia’s climate of tolerance and cultural heritage
associated with coming up with workable solutions.”
President Erdoğan
emphasized that global issues affect all nations around the world, and added,
“We are faced with many challenges such as climate change, pandemic, energy and
food supply security, terrorism, xenophobia and Islamophobia, racism, irregular
migration, economic recession, and setbacks in supply chains. We can overcome
these challenges through a global understanding of cooperation and
understanding.” During the summit, President Erdoğan also held bilateral
meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Ebrahim
Raisi, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon,
Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra
Modi. Established in 2001, the eight-member organization aims to strengthen
neighborly relations and mutual trust among member states.