The Chinese city of Shanghai was chosen to be the place where the anniversary summit of the Shanghai Five country-members was held on June 14-15, 2001. The main agenda of the meeting was to exchange opinions on important issues in international politics, discuss the future development of the relationships between member-countries’ within the framework of the new Shanghai Organization for Cooperation, and sign a number of documents, one of which was about Uzbekistan’s accession to the organization.

Since April 1996, the presidents of Russia, China, Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan get together every year to speak about regional and world problems and find solutions to them. The primary goal of the Shanghai Five establishment was to enhance security in border areas between the post-Soviet states and China. The seven thousand kilometers of heavily armed Chinese-Soviet frontier was often the scene of military clashes between the two countries. After the break up of the Soviet Union, the border issues remained a source of potential conflict. Thus the founding fathers of the organization were hoping to put an end to the tense Sino-Soviet border relations and direct Sino-CIS relations on a peaceful path.

Gradually the organization broadened its spheres of interest from border security to a wide area of other forms of cooperation. By the end of the 2001 June summit, the six leaders signed a Convention on combating terrorism, extremism and separatism, and agreed to the establishment of an anti-terrorist center of the Shanghai Organization for Cooperation in Bishkek along with the similar unit initiated at the NIS summit. All of the participants expressed their conviction to deepening and strengthening economic and trade relationships. Russian President Putin, commenting on the issue, told RIA Novosti that “it is important to establish strong economic and trade relationships, which themselves will be guarantors of stability in the region.”

At the 2000 Dushanbe summit five leaders agreed to rename Shanghai Five to Shanghai Forum, thus not limiting other countries’ entry. Even as Islam Karimov took part in that summit as an observer, Uzbekistan was still hesitating about joining. As the Trans-Caspian Project reports, Tashkent was “maneuvering”, hoping to keep a good relationship with the US and at the same time ensure its security. Nevertheless, threatened by Islamic militants, isolationist Tashkent reconsidered its priorities towards Russia and China and finally joined the organization, hoping to get security guarantees in return. “Security issues are the most important. If there is peace in Central Asia, all other questions will be solved”, were the words of Karimov published by information center Akipress.

So far the Shanghai Organization has been pretty successful in regulating border issues among its members. “Looking back we can state that the Shanghai Five endured the test of time and developed into a principally new international legal organization”, according to Kyrgyz President Akaev’s speech at the summit, quoted by the information center Akipress. Although small portions of disputed territories remain, it is assumed that the primary goal of the organization’s establishment has been fulfilled. Leaders put forward new tasks for their future cooperation: “Beijing will always oppose three evils (terrorism, extremism and separatism) and collaborate with all countries in this sphere”, Lu Guchan, Chinese vice foreign minister, told RIA “Novosti”.

Ill-equipped Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan are looking up to Russia and China to support them militarily in fighting Islamic militants. Kazakhstan, threatened with approaching Islamic extremists and unable to help its neighbors in repulsing them, is also relying on Moscow’s and Beijing’s assistance. Moscow, in its turn, is hoping to reestablish its influence in the region and fill the “security vacuum”, that has appeared after the Soviet break up. China’s main interest is to prevent the spillover of the “three evils” into its Muslim Xinjiang province.

All member countries are very much interested in preserving stability in Central Asia. However, it is important to analyze by what means stability will be maintained. The way it is done now, through threatening people and imprisoning religious activists, is unlikely bring long term stability and security. Another way was voiced at the summit: stability  and security through economic and trade cooperation. It is up to the leaders to decide what way would be the most efficient. However poverty-stricken people, disillusioned in improvement of economic conditions,  are joining Islamic radicals who promise rapid change in ever greater numbers. It is hard to estimate how big the number of those who have joined is, or how many people would possibly side with the militants in case of an incursion. 

Maria Utyaganova, student, International Relations Department, American University in Kyrgyzstan, Bishkek.