Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice achieves fruitful outcomes on legal cooperation

The 10th Meeting of Ministers of Justice of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Member States was held in Shanghai on Sept 5.

The attendees held an in-depth exchange of views on the achievements the mechanism of the Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice has made in the past decade, as well as challenges facing the meeting mechanism, achieving a series of outcomes in strengthening practical cooperation in law-based governance.

The ministers signed a joint statement of the 10th Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice, emphasizing the importance of cooperation in legal and judicial fields since the SCO was established 22 years ago. They also reached agreement on strengthening interactions among SCO ministries of justice, deepening cooperation in legal services and holding dialogues on a regular basis, as well as effectively implementing relevant agreements.

An international forum on legal services was also held on the sidelines of the meeting.

After the meeting, China's Ministry of Justice (MOJ) signed deals on cooperation from 2024 to 2025 with its counterparts in Russia and Kyrgyzstan.

China's MOJ proposed a three-point initiative at the meeting. It called for sustained efforts to further improve the mechanism of the Meeting of SCO Ministers of Justice and establish an even closer SCO cooperation network in legal services.

It also suggested continuously improving the quality and effectiveness of exchanges and cooperation regarding the rule of law and enhancing coordination in such fields as combating cross-border crimes, conducting judicial assistance and promoting regional economic and trade cooperation.

The MOJ also highlighted the need to enhance practical cooperation in legal service fields, such as lawyers, arbitration and commercial mediation, and to work together to establish a database for laws and regulations related to trade and investment, legal service institutions and experts of SCO member states, in a bid to better serve their economic and trade development.

The Meeting of the SCO Ministers of Justice is a multilateral cooperation mechanism under the SCO framework. It was hosted by China's MOJ this year.