BISHKEK: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said water was the lifeblood of the region and must never be weaponised or used as an instrument of coercion or political leverage, adding that treaties governing shared waters were binding international commitments that must be honoured unconditionally.
Addressing the 26th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of State here, the prime minister highlighted the extraordinary potential of SCO region, calling for united efforts to advance the development agenda through trans-regional connectivity initiatives, energy projects and collaboration in IT & AI, poverty reduction, health and sports to choose cooperation over confrontation for regional peace and prosperity.
“Together, let us turn the vision of the SCO into action, its promise into progress and its progress into a better future for all. Let us, therefore, move forward together with the resolve that in a time of uncertainty, history will record the SCO as having chosen cooperation over confrontation, dialogue over division, bridges over barriers and hope over fear. Let history record that the SCO did not merely witness a changing world – we helped shape it,” the prime minister said
He said Pakistan would pursue its incoming SCO chairmanship under an action plan proposing to prioritise aforementioned key priority sectors during Pakistan’s tenure. He proposed establishing an SCO Sovereign AI Infrastructure and Governance Framework to promote responsible and inclusive AI development, strengthen digital sovereignty and ensure no member state was left behind. He also announced that Pakistan would host the Global Resilience Expo 2026-2027 in Islamabad to enhance regional disaster management, early warning and response coordination.
Thanking Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov for hosting the summit and for his country’s successful SCO chairmanship, the prime minister said Pakistan took great pride in being part of the organisation as it marked twenty-five years since its founding. He described the SCO’s growth from a tender sapling into a towering tree that provided security and stability to the region.
He said Pakistan’s sustained diplomatic efforts as an honest and sincere mediator and facilitator had culminated in the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, which he called the most viable and enduring pathway to lasting peace in the region.
He also referred to the recently signed trilateral Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, describing it as an expression of shared commitment to sovereignty, territorial integrity, collective security and regional peace. He clarified that the agreement was “fundamentally defensive in nature” and was not directed against any state.
The prime minister said the current global landscape was marked by intensifying geopolitical tensions, a fragmenting global economy, escalating climate crises and unprecedented technological change, and that the SCO represented the collective resolve of member states to navigate these challenges together.
Reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to the United Nations and SCO charters, he said the country had staunchly advocated peace when the sovereignty and territorial integrity of an SCO member state was violated earlier this year, triggering a major regional crisis whose disruption of energy supply routes had imposed a heavy economic cost on Pakistan and the wider international community.
The prime minister, turning to the situation in the Middle East, said the plight of the people of Gaza and the West Bank continued unabated, causing unimaginable suffering, and called on the international community to help the Palestinian people and other oppressed nations secure their right to self-determination.
Highlighting Pakistan’s counter-terrorism record, the prime minister said the country had sacrificed over 90,000 lives and suffered economic losses exceeding $150 billion over the past two and a half decades in the fight against terrorism.
As chair of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (SCO RATS), he said Pakistan had worked actively to strengthen regional counter-terrorism cooperation, while reiterating that peace in the region would remain elusive so long as terrorist elements continued to use Afghan soil to attack Pakistan and other neighbouring countries.
The prime minister noted that more than three billion people lived in the SCO region, making greater regional connectivity not merely an option but a strategic necessity. He said recent crises had highlighted the importance of secure energy corridors, while stressing the need to promote regional rail, road and energy projects.
On regional connectivity, the prime minister said the China Pakistan Economic Corridor continued to serve as a gateway linking regional economies to the Arabian Sea, and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to trans-regional railway projects, road connectivity initiatives and regional energy schemes.
He called for full implementation of the SCO Development Strategy until 2035 and said the establishment of SCO Development Bank would be a critical step in that direction. He noted that Pakistan, as permanent chair of the SCO’s Special Working Group on Poverty Reduction, would continue strengthening social protection and inclusive development across the region.
Concluding his address, the prime minister said that just as many streams together made a mighty river, the combined strength and aspirations of SCO nations held limitless potential. He expressed hope that history would record the SCO as an organisation that chose cooperation over confrontation, dialogue over division, bridges over barriers and hope over fear.
Shehbaz also signed the joint declaration of SCO Council of Heads of State Summit. The summit was attended by heads of state and government of SCO member countries along with SCO Secretary General Nurlan Yermekbayev.
Separately, addressing the SCO Plus Format meeting, a day after the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that 1960 Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) remains in full force and ordered India to limit ongoing hydroelectric construction in Kashmir, the prime minister, calling water a “lifeblood” of the region to sustain millions of lives and secure the future of coming generations, said that it must never be weaponised or used for political coercion. “Water is the lifeblood of our region that sustains millions of lives, nourishes our lands and secures the very future of our coming generations. It must never be weaponised or used for political coercion. The treaties governing our shared waters are binding commitments that must be honoured unconditionally both in letter and spirit,” he added.
Addressing the event, themed “The UN as a Key Element of the Just World Order: The Contribution of the SCO Plus States to the Formation of a Multipolar World,” he said that as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, Pakistan has been actively contributing to global peacemaking over the past two years. The meeting was chaired by the President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov as the country holds the rotating presidency of the SCO from 2025 to 2026.
“Our humble peace efforts culminated in the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding. It provides the most viable and enduring pathway to end the ongoing conflict in the Gulf region, and offers a widely accepted basis for all parties to pursue peace through dialogue and diplomacy.” He said that Pakistan was also a signatory to the Makkah Defence Alliance along with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye that has further strengthened prospects for peace in the region by sending a message of unity and common resolve.
The prime minister said that having been established 80 years ago, the United Nations adopted collective approaches to deal effectively with poverty, hunger, disease, environment and many other challenges of our times and that Pakistan also remained fully committed to its Charter.
He said that the rising multipolar world was an opportunity to build a more equitable, democratic and just international system. “But today, the UN is urgently in need of reform. It must become more accountable and responsive.”
Calling the situation in Gaza and the West Bank “deeply troubling”, Shehbaz called upon the international community to act decisively to end the suffering of the innocent Palestinian people, and uphold their inalienable right to self-determination. “The same rights must also be granted to all other oppressed nations,” he urged.
Highlighting terrorism as a common threat, he said that Pakistan was fully committed to advancing shared objectives under the Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS) of dealing with the three evils of “terrorism, separatism and religious extremism”.
“Pakistan will continue to bravely confront and defeat the scourge of terrorism. With over ninety thousand lives lost and $150 billion in economic losses, our nation has stood resolutely in combating terrorism, not just for ourselves but for the entire world.”
Calling for the condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, including state terrorism, he said that the vision of regional connectivity could only be achieved once there was peace and stability in Afghanistan, and called for an end to terrorist groups using Afghan soil to carry out attacks in Pakistan and other neighbouring countries.
He said that as Pakistan assumed the chairmanship of SCO, the country would be guided by the conviction that the SCO must deliver tangible dividends to its peoples. “During the next one year, we shall prioritise IT & AI, energy, development and poverty reduction, disaster management, health, culture and sports,” he said and reaffirmed the resolve to realise the true potential of SCO, seeking cooperation of SCO Member States as well as SCO Plus family.
The prime minister also invited the participating leaders to attend the next session of the Format to be held in Islamabad in 2027 as the country assumes the SCO presidency from 2026-2027.
Meanwhile, the prime minister held informal meetings with several world leaders, discussing key bilateral, regional and international matters. The informal interactions were held on the sidelines of 26th Summit of the SCO Council of Heads of State.
The prime minister remained a central figure during these interactions, which were held in a warm and cordial atmosphere. The leaders who participated in these informal meetings included Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Iranian President Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.
Earlier, as the prime minister arrived at the venue of the summit, he was warmly received by Kyrgyzstan President Sadyr Nurgozhoevich Zhaparov.
During one of the meetings, PM Shehbaz and Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko reaffirmed their shared commitment and resolve to elevate the long-standing friendly relations between Pakistan and Belarus to new heights. “The two leaders expressed satisfaction at the positive trajectory of Pakistan-Belarus bilateral relations and the robust cooperation across political, trade, economic, defence and cultural fields,” the PM Office Media Wing said in a press release.
The two leaders agreed to further enhance bilateral cooperation in trade, industry, agriculture, Information Technology and vocational training as priority sectors. As the incoming Chair of the SCO Council of Heads of State, the prime minister extended a warm and cordial invitation to the president of Belarus to undertake a visit to Pakistan next year.
