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MOSCOW, 14 April (BelTA) – Belarus may get an observer status in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Russian experts made the statement during the linkup, Russia-China: Regional Security and Cooperation within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, on 14 April.

According to Deputy Director of the Institute of Far Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Sergei Luzyanin, the forthcoming summit of the Organization would not simply mean its strengthening. “Two new participants, India and Pakistan, will emerge. The institute of observers will be renewed. I do not rule out Belarusian representatives there,” he noted.

Sergei Luzyanin expressed confidence that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization needs not only expansion but also modernization. Among the priority goals is the creation of the Development Bank of the Organization.

Director General of the Caspian Cooperation Institute Sergei Mikheyev noted that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization still remains a framework organization. “Its potential is big. We lack concrete projects, though. The Organization should not be limited to the narrow frameworks of regional cooperation. It should aim at becoming a global player,” the expert believes.

In turn, Sun Zhuangzhi, Secretary-General of the SCO Research Center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences stressed that “cooperation in security should be revised.”

“This area should include economic, environmental, social and security issues. We need concrete structures to deal with the issues,” he said. The Chinese expert added that the forthcoming high-level meeting in Ufa that is scheduled for 8-10 July 2015 may add momentum to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in the military and political area.