Kazakhstan ratifies agreement on cooperation with SCO member countries on border issues

ASTANA, March 15. /TASS/. Kazakhstan has ratified the agreement on cooperation on border issues with member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the presidential press service said on Tuesday. Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev signed a corresponding law earlier today, the press service said. The document names relevant structures that will cooperate on border issues, outlines the framework for holding meetings between the heads of these structures or their deputies and provides a schedule for working meetings. According to the law, SCO member countries will cooperate in planning and implementing coordinated border activities, informational exchange and professional training. "Other spheres of cooperation are possible if mutual interests of the participants are observed and it is line with national legislation of the sides," the document noted. The Kazakh parliament previously said that the aim of the document is "to strengthen cooperation between SCO member countries in the sphere of guarding state borders, ensuring security in border areas, increasing the capabilities of relevant agencies of the sides, as well as coordinating efforts in establishing, preventing and countering illegal actions on state borders of Organization’s member countries." SCO The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a permanent regional international association, the establishment of which was announced on June 15, 2001, in Shanghai. The organization brings together Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. During the SCO summit in Ufa on July 9 and July 10 the start of the admission procedure for India and Pakistan was announced. The leaders of the SCO member-countries also decided to grant Belarus observer status, while Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia and Nepal became dialogue partners. SCO priority spheres include joint fight against terrorism and extremism, cooperation in the spheres of education, energy, transport, and telecommunications. The total population of SCO countries is almost 1.6 billion people, and the total GDP of the member countries is $11.6 trillion. Read more