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SCO and BRICS summits in Ufa

SCO countries to continue working on establishing development bank, fund

The SCO countries decided to set up their own bank and fund at the summit in Bishkek in December of 2012. So far no practical steps to establish these institutions have been made

© Summit photo hosting agency

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UFA, July 10. /TASS/. The countries of SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) will continue working on the establishment of the Development Bank and Development Fund, according to the final declaration that was approved on Friday following the results of the summit.

According to the document, the member-states will continue to work on creation of the SCO Development Fund and SCO Development Bank to boost trade and investment relations in the region.

The SCO member-states are China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan. Afghanistan, India, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan are observer states of the organization.

The SCO countries decided to set up their own bank and fund at the summit in Bishkek in December of 2012. So far no practical steps to establish these institutions have been made.

The creation of new institutes for development in China and other countries of BRICS /Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa/ may give an impetus to the establishment of same institutes by the SCO.

BRICS countries signed an agreement on establishing BRICS New Development Bank in July 2014 in Brazil. The bank is to finance infrastructure projects and sustainable development of the member-states of BRICS and other developing countries.

In 2013, China initiated the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to stimulate financial interaction in the Asia-Pacific region, implement infrastructural projects and also expand integration processes. The bank’s five major founding nations by investment are China, India, Russia, Germany and South Korea.

On December 29, 2014, the Silk Road Fund was established to finance the Silk Road Economic Belt. The fund is worth $40 bln. The Silk Road Economic Belt envisages support for investment and infrastructural projects, expected to bring about a common market of Europe and Asia and a network of automobile roads and railways, industrial parks and power plants.

At the summits of BRICS and SCO in Ufa, the founders of these institutes said that they won’t compete with each other.

The SCO countries also plan to create an International center for project financing on the base of its interbank association. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin announced this at an extended session of the Council of the leaders of SCO countries.

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