Alwaght-The 13th summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) ended in Islamabad on Wednesday with members vowing to double intra-regional trade.
ECO a Eurasian political and economic intergovernmental organization which was founded in 1985 in Tehran by the leaders of Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, succeeded the Regional Cooperation for Development which the three countries founded in 1964 to promote cooperation among member states. In 1992, the ECO expanded to include seven new members; Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
This year’s summit was attended by heads of states of all ECO members except Afghanistan which sent a lower level delegation owing to tensions with Pakistan over terrorism. The leaders of participating countries, during their discussions, reiterated the importance of connectivity for prosperity of the region and exchanged views on regional and global issues, besides deliberating on ways of making the ECO a more efficient organization.
During his address at the summit, Iran’s president Hassan Rouhani stressed cooperation between the countries, adding: “Let us believe that our power is in our links and the future of the region shall be formed with the decisions we make today and the prosperity of tomorrow depends on our bonds today”. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who chaired the summit, said at the end of the session that, “The successful holding of the summit is a manifestation of the desire and commitment of the member states to transform the ECO into a vibrant regional bloc.”
Iran president meets leaders of Pakistan, Turkey
The summit adopted Islamabad Declaration and Vision 2025. The declaration calls for development of transport and communication infrastructure, facilitation of trade and investment, promotion of connectivity with other regions, effective use of energy resources and undertaking measures for making the ECO effective and efficient. Vision 2025 underscores promotion of cooperation among member states.
On the sideline of the summit, Iran’s Hassan Rouhani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held bilateral talks and agreed to improve ties, including in the fight against terrorism. President Rouhani pointed out that, “The Islamic Republic of Iran stresses respect for the territorial integrity of regional countries and is against any violation of territorial integrity in the region, especially in Syria and Iraq.” He also reiterated Iran’s support for dialogue and mutual respect to settle differences. Rouhani said described Iran and Turkey as two instrumental countries of the region. In his remarks during the meeting, Erdogan said that Tehran-Ankara cooperation was essential to the settlement of regional woes and the war on terror adding that Turkey embraced the promotion of ties with Iran. President Rouhani also held talks with his host, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and exchanged views on bilateral, regional and international issues. Rouhani stated that Iran is ready to fulfill the energy needs of Pakistan, including Islamabad’s growing demand for electricity. He also called for more cooperation between the private sectors of the two countries with a view to boosting bilateral trade to $5 billion. The Pakistani leader, for his part, called for all-out ties between Tehran and Islamabad.
ECO slams US sanctions on Iran
The ECO summit slammed travel restrictions and economic sanctions against Iran by the United States although the US was not directly named.
“(We) express concern over the attempts by certain quarters to threaten democracy, discriminatory immigration policies by some states and use of unilateral economic sanctions and coercions by some states,” the declaration says.
ECO member states can play an important role in stabilizing this region beset by crises imposed by the US, Britain and Saudi Arabia. ECO founder member, Iran, been at the forefront of efforts aimed at restoring peace in the region. ECO countries can restore stability in Pakistan and Afghanistan by drawing lessons from the axis of unity between Iran, Iraq and Syria which has been crucial in dealing heavy blows to Takfiri terrorists in the two Arab states.
Iran’s high level participation at the ECO summit in Islamabad and member states support of its stances is a pointer to the country’s growing influence globally and a refutation of those claiming that Tehran is isolated. ECO founder members, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey continue to have strong and strategic ties despite challenges and will anchor this organization to greater role and influence regionally and globally.
