An archive photo
MINSK, 24 April (BelTA) – Moscow hosted another round of consultations on the international activities of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and regional security at the level of deputy foreign ministers on 24 April, BelTA learned from the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Belarusian delegation was headed by First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lukashevich. The consultations focused on deepening the foreign policy coordination of SCO member states in order to strengthen the organization’s international standing.
Consideration was given to the SCO’s role in shaping a framework for equal and indivisible security in Eurasia in the context of ongoing regional challenges, and to enhancing the organization’s emergency response mechanisms.
In his speech, the first deputy foreign minister said: “Belarus is following the developments in the Persian Gulf with profound concern. We proceed from the principle that aggression against sovereign and independent states is unacceptable. Of particular danger in this conflict are strikes on civilian, industrial and energy infrastructure. No objectives can justify a disregard for human life. The humanitarian consequences have already reached catastrophic proportions. We emphasize the unconditional necessity of protecting the civilian population in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.”
Sergei Lukashevich also noted: “Strikes against Iran’s peaceful nuclear infrastructure, including the area near the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, are a cause for grave concern. Any damage to such facilities carries the risk of not only a local disaster but also uncontrolled radioactive contamination that knows no national borders. The only way out is to return to the path of a political and diplomatic settlement.”
“In the current situation, it is necessary to join forces to prevent a full-scale regional and global war that would have catastrophic and unpredictable long-term consequences,” the Belarusian first deputy foreign minister said.
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