On 21-22 May 2025, New Delhi hosts the 20th anniversary meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Forum under the presidency of the Indian Council of World Affairs. We asked the head of the Belarusian delegation, Vitaly Stakhovsky, Deputy Director of the Belarusian Institute of Strategic Research, to share his impressions of participating in the event.
- Vitaly, what has changed for the BISR since Belarus's accession to the SCO in July last year in terms of interaction with the Forum of this Organization?
- In 2025, our institute for the first time will take part in the annual meeting of the SCO Forum as a full member of this expert-consultative mechanism in the status of a National Research Center. This status is envisaged by the Rules of the Forum and is assigned to the BISR by a relevant decision.
I take this opportunity to sincerely thank our Indian partners for their kind invitation to attend the anniversary meeting, as well as for its flawless organization.
- By the way, speaking about the organization of the meeting, it is hard to ignore its semantic slogan: "SECURE SCO: towards the transformation of the region in the spirit of “Peace is one family” How can you comment on it?
- The choice of this slogan by the Indian partners is not random. We believe that this phrase from Maha Upanishad, the sacred Sanskrit text, a fundamental principle and philosophy of Indian strategic culture, very accurately reflects the importance and necessity of synergy between the potentials of the SCO Family members, which, in fact, was referred to during the discussions.
- You made a thematic presentation in one of the panel discussions. Can you share the details, what exactly did you talk about?
- Indeed, I had the honor to make a presentation themed "The potential of Belarus as a new SCO Member State for sustainable development in the Organization's space: expert view of the BISR."
Our basic thesis echoed in harmony with the slogan of the meeting: long-term security is unattainable without solving current socio-economic issues, as well as ensuring stability and sustainable development in the SCO space in the spirit of cooperation, partnership and consideration of each other's interests.
I highlighted the comparative advantages and potential of Belarus, and focused on the synergetic effect that our country can bring to the Organization for the sustainable and secure development of the region.
In particular, it was noted that the economy of Belarus is the 114th in the world in terms of per capita GDP by PPP. Following the 2023 data, this figure is $30.8 thousand (2020 – $24.9 thousand). In 2024, Belarus was the third in the IMF's rating of projected GDP growth among European countries (3.6% growth).
According to the UNDP Human Development Report 2023-2024, Belarus belongs to the countries with a high level of human development and ranks 69th among 193 countries in the Global Human Development Index. Following the last year results, Belarus ranked 16th among 170 countries in Access to Basic Knowledge of the Social Progress Index.
It was emphasized that the main increase in the country's GDP is provided by industry (2024 – 105.4% increase), in particular, mechanical engineering (from dump trucks, combine harvesters, tractors, buses to trucks and cars). This led our country to the 53rd position in the Competitive Industrial Performance Index (2024 data).
Belarus is actively developing areas such as microelectronics and instrumentation; machine tool manufacturing and robotics; biological and pharmaceutical technologies; unmanned systems (unmanned vehicles, unmanned agricultural machines and drones for precision farming, quarry and municipal household appliances controlled using artificial intelligence, etc.); additive technologies and new materials.
The imminent presentation of the first domestic electric car only underlines our country's commitment to technological progress.
The contribution of Belarus as a donor of food security was noted. Our country has both resources (for example, mineral fertilizers) and competencies in the production and export of agricultural products, food and machinery. In addition, it is one of the top 10 exporters of dairy products, including through the construction of modern high-tech dairy farms.
A special emphasis is placed on the fact that a solid foundation has been laid for our country's energy sovereignty, the scientific potential of the nuclear energy industry is being formed – the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant has been built, and the construction of another plant is being discussed.
In addition, Belarus strives to improve energy security by involving local resources in the fuel and energy balance, including renewable energy sources, the use of nuclear energy; reconstruction and modernization of electric and thermal networks based on the introduction of innovative and energy-efficient technologies; development of energy infrastructure; digitalization of energy, including the introduction of smart grid technologies and the use of artificial intelligence; maximizing the generation of nuclear energy into the overall energy mix; and improving the energy efficiency of the economy.
Belarus remains the westernmost outpost and bridge of the SCO to Europe, even despite the restrictive policy of the West. The geographical location allows for harmonious integration into SCO transport projects, including participation in the creation of multimodal transit corridors and the Eurasian Land Bridge development (North-South, West-East directions).
Special attention is paid to the digitalization of trade and transport routes, the creation of a transparent customs transit system that is reliably insured against external risks, which increases the attractiveness of Belarusian routes. An emphasis was made on the Belarusian President's initiative to create combined "green" digitized corridors, which matches the SCO priorities.
Belarus consistently supports the creation of the SCO monetary, financial and payment platforms to simplify mutual trade and minimize losses in mutual settlements. By the way, Belarus is the first country in the world to legalize cryptocurrencies in 2017.
An important message was that, while working to ensure its technological sovereignty, Belarus is building a multi-level (informal and commercial level of transfer) technology transfer system, creating the necessary and sufficient conditions for the implementation of technologies in practice. The country has a modern telecommunications infrastructure providing high-speed Internet (according to the Global Innovation Index 2023, Belarus ranks 22nd in terms of access to ICT). By 2030, digital platforms will be created in key industries, including the flagship agricultural sector. The strategic vector is the digital development of the regions, including the creation of the national digital platform "Smart City (Region)".
The opinion was expressed that a rich national technological agenda should be accompanied by closer cooperation within the SCO. The goal is to create Eurasian technologies with a non–discriminatory transfer system between member states based on country specialization.
The healthcare sector is highlighted as one of the important areas of cooperation. It is known that the SCO has adopted a Comprehensive Plan of joint action to counteract the threats of epidemics (2020), and working mechanisms on traditional medicine have been established. By the way, traditional medicine, especially Chinese medicine, Ayurveda and others, is recognized in the SCO as a valuable resource for improving the accessibility and effectiveness of healthcare.
Although Belarus does not have a well-known national system of traditional medicine, such as China or India, the country has a rich legacy of folk medicine, including the use of medicinal plants, phytotherapy and traditional methods of treatment.
We have confirmed our readiness to create hybrid centers of traditional medicine aimed at providing services to both the local population and medical tourists from the SCO countries. We called on our partners to share their experience and technologies in this area in the interests of developing the pharmaceutical industry, creating joint educational programs, and developing medical tourism.
We are able to contribute to the SCO's initiatives to respond to epidemics and other emergencies in healthcare, using our acquired competencies to increase the sustainability of healthcare systems in Eurasia.
It was also noted that joint work to improve the effectiveness of the SCO should be accompanied by the development of a system of clear and precise criteria for evaluating results. The key measure, in our opinion, may be the number of projects implemented under the SCO umbrella based on the "one country – one project" principle.
- Did your report address issues of cooperation in the SCO in the field of security?
- Sure. The main narrative here was that the SCO should strive to exceed the speed of sustainable development processes by several times over the dynamics of challenges and threats, seeking to ensure security through development.
It was emphasized that our country has traditionally been a consistent supporter of the concept of "integration of integrations" and advocates for the synergy of the potentials of such integration associations as the EAEU, CIS, CSTO, BRICS to create a space of trust and secure development in the region.
In this regard, we called on the Forum participants to support the Belarusian-Russian initiative to prepare the "Eurasian Charter of Multipolarity and Diversity in the 21st Century", as well as to take an active part in the III Minsk International Conference on Eurasian Security this autumn, where this document is expected to be adopted.
- Vitaly, returning to the SCO Forum, should we expect any changes in its work?
- The SCO Forum as a tool for information and analytical support of the Secretariat's activities is developing in the rhythm of modernization of the Organization itself and its permanent statutory bodies.
Our delegation has made a number of innovative proposals aimed at further developing and improving the mechanism of the SCO Forum. We hope that they will be heard and in demand. Some of them were generated taking into account the wishes of SCO Secretary General Nurlan Yermekbayev, who visited the BISR in January 2025 and expressed interest in more active and applied expert support of the Secretariat from the National Research Centers of the Member States.