When the superpowers are at odds with each other, countries like Kazakhstan have a very important role – António Guterres
With the approach of the SCO summit in Astana on July 3-4, António Guterres, the UN Secretary General, shared his opinion on the summit and Kazakhstan’s role in the organization in an exclusive interview with Silk Way TV channel. Kazinform correspondent shares the details.
"The United Nations and the SCO have established partnering relations for 20 years, focusing on global dialogue and exchange on issues like climate change, sustainable development, and terrorism. Secretary General Gutteres was asked about what can organizations like SCO and UN do to foster global dialogue and global exchange on different issues: climate change, sustainable development, or combating terrorism and crimes.
We can work together, first of all, in the prevention of conflict. It's good to solve a conflict. It's better to avoid it. We can work together in counterterrorism. Terrorism is still a threat in this part of the world and our Office of Counterterrorism is ready to fully cooperate with the Shanghai Cooperation Council in relation to your own concerns, in relation to violent extremism and terrorism. We are entirely at the disposal of the Shanghai Cooperation Council to cooperate on this.
On the other hand, the two organizations are committed to peace, they are committed to dialogue, and they are committed to the solution of problems. They are committed to a vision of one world that is not divided or fragmented with one only market, one only global economy, one set of standards for artificial intelligence and other technological aspects to avoid this idea that we should split the world into two. That would be a total disaster.
I think the cooperation of the UN and the Shanghai Cooperation Council contribute to this bringing together the different parts of the world, and to limit the damage caused by the fact that the superpowers are at odds with each other. When the superpowers are at odds with each other, countries like Kazakhstan have a very important role, and organizations like UN and the Shanghai Cooperation Council have a very important role to make sure that we are able to address the conflicts, to make sure that we are able to establish more justice in international economic relations, to reform international financial institutions to the benefit of developing countries, and that we are also more able to have a global perspective of human rights. Human rights are economic, social, cultural, political, and civil: they must be seen together and without double standards.
That will, in my opinion, facilitate progress in human rights instead of transforming human rights in a mode of contention that doesn't make sense, because we are talking about something that is to benefit everybody," he said.
UN Secretary-General Guterres will be in attendance as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana on July 4.
