SCO will never be a military bloc - secretary general

BEIJING, July 7. /TASS./. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will never become a military bloc, SCO Secretary General Dmitry Mezentsev told TASS in an exclusive interview on Tuesday. "SCO is not going to become a military and political alliance, it will never be a military bloc," Mezentsev stressed, commenting on statements made earlier by international observers after large-scale anti-terrorism drills "Peace Mission - 2014" took place in August 2014 on China’s territory with participation of SCO member countries. "It is important to note that the scenario of drills remains practically unchanged," the SCo secretary general said. "Over the last years, defense ministries of SCO member countries cooperated only in anti-terrorism efforts," he added. Mezentsev said the organization is prepared to deal with issues of regional security, but SCO member countries consider it especially important to "be able to rely on the potential of political and diplomatic measures." "SCO is generally ready to respond to challenges that emerge in the sphere of security," Mezentsev said. One of the major modern threats is cyber-terrorism, he added. SCO also continues to pay much attention to fight against drugs, Mezentsev noted. "In this sphere, defense ministries are cooperating in an exemplary manner. But I want to stress once again that SCO does not have military units. Going beyond the organization’s borders to solve any kind of issues by military means is ruled out," he stressed. Read more