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Bakytzhan Sagintaev, Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission's Board, participated in the SCO Plus summit held in Astana on July 4.

The high-level meeting focused on strengthening multilateral dialog and pursuing sustainable peace and development.

The Heads of States, Governments and international organizations considered a wide range of issues. Thus, the summit approved the application of the Republic of Belarus to join the SCO as a full member state.

In addition, the summit participants discussed trade and economic interaction in the region. This is especially important given the high development rate of the SCO member countries’ economies. They account for over 30% of global GDP ($38.5 trillion), over 16% of global trade ($5.5 trillion), and over 41% of the world's population (over 3 billion people).

According to Bakytzhan Sagintaev, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the Eurasian Economic Union have the potential to mutually complement each other. This is confirmed by the growing interest the business community have in the dialog, which includes forming a barrier-free economic environment, increasing the share of domestic currency settlements in mutual trade, and establishing common development institutions.

“The EAEU and SCO countries are important elements of the modern Eurasian economic architecture,” the Head of the EEC Board notes. “These states form the core of the Eurasian continent, and their relations largely determine the vector of the region's further development”.

The EEC and the SCO Secretariat cooperate based on the relevant memorandum. A detailed cooperation plan is currently being finalized. The draft document envisages joint activities, exchanging information and experience, preparing analytical materials of mutual interest.