MINSK, 22 September (BelTA) – The core focus of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has elegantly evolved to include economic cooperation, Belarusian First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Snopkov said in an interview to Belarus 1 TV channel, BelTA has learned.
When asked if innovation cooperation is needed within the SCO framework, Nikolai Snopkov noted: “Development is impossible without innovation. That, it seems to me, is already a fundamental rule. Innovation, in the classical sense, is something new that has been implemented. We simply cannot live on old knowledge. We must always move forward, create new things, and implement them. Without this, we will not win in the increasingly intense global competition in all fields. In my opinion, for the sake of economic sustainability within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, innovation should be the number one priority.”
“We see today how the organization's core focus has somewhat transformed. After all, it was originally created with security in mind. But today, it is elegantly transforming to encompass not only security but also economic cooperation. This shift is being driven by an aggressive external environment and the tough actions taken by the powers that be - the Western countries,” the first deputy prime minister of Belarus said.
In conclusion, Nikolai Snopkov noted that it is a given that the countries operating within the SCO must work together on innovation to implement it in their respective nations and to maintain their competitiveness.
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