摘要：At the core of the SCO lies the "Shanghai Spirit": mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civil
By Xu Ying
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit 2025 is being held at a moment of both global uncertainty and regional opportunity. The Tianjin Summit – the largest in the SCO's history and the fifth hosted by China – is a milestone marking not only a new stage of high-quality development of the expanded bloc but also its growing ambition to shape global norms. What began in 2001 as a pragmatic forum to resolve border disputes has since evolved into a body that aspires to set a new benchmark for international relations.
At the core of the SCO lies the "Shanghai Spirit": mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilizations and pursuit of common development. These six principles, articulated at its founding, remain the essence of its appeal. The Shanghai Spirit resonates with many Global South nations weary of power politics and disillusioned with the double standard of some Western-led institutions.
It offers an alternative built on cooperation and inclusion, instead of domination and exclusion, which is the norm in some alliances. Its summits underscore that consultation is more than symbolism; it is the mechanism through which decisions are made.
The SCO offers something durable: a culture of equality that has proven resilient despite the diversity of its membership. The SCO countries differ dramatically in size, political systems and economic models. Yet ithas not fractured under the weight of these differences. On the contrary, its longevity suggests that its respect for sovereignty and non-interference is precisely what makes cooperation possible. It has shown that divergent paths of development can coexist within the same framework and consensus is achievable without uniformity.
Today, the SCO's relevance extends well beyond regional affairs. With 10 member states, twoobserver states and 14 dialogue partners, it accountsfor nearly half of humanity and roughly a quarter of the world's GDP. Itincludesboth resource producers and consumers, advanced economies and emerging ones, countries grappling with rapid urbanization and others rich in traditional culture. This demographic and economic weight alone makes the SCO impossible to ignore and it wields this weight as a platform for shared growth and stability.
The SCO's economic agenda has steadily expanded. Infrastructure development, energy cooperation, digital transformation and green growth are now at the forefront. Its commitment to supply-chain stability is particularly relevant at a time when geopolitical tensions elsewhere are driving fragmentation and decoupling.
By lowering barriers and fostering connectivity, the SCO presents itself as a guardian of globalization's more inclusive, sustainable version – one that benefits a wider range of countries rather than concentrating gains among a few. In doing so, it counters the narrative that globalization is in retreat. Rather, it is being reshaped along more plural lines.
This pluralism feeds into a larger trend: the rise of multipolarity. For much of the post-Cold War era, it was assumed that the global order would remain anchored in Western institutions and leadership. Today, that assumption no longer holds.
The SCO embodies the desire of many states to diversify their partnerships and reduce dependence on any single centerof power. By providing a forum in which many countriessit at the same table, the SCO signals that multipolarity is not a slogan but a practice. It is the institutional expression of a more balanced, less hierarchical order.
Western critics often dismiss the SCO as a "talk shop," pointing to its consensus-based procedures and lack of hard enforcement tools. Yet this criticism misses the point. The SCO was never designed as a military bloc or a trading pact. Its purpose is to institutionalize habits of dialogue and cooperation among countries that historically had few platforms for engagement. Its joint exercises in counterterrorism, its initiatives in energy and cultural exchange and its steady expansion of membership and partnerships all contribute to a fabric of trust. Trust, once embedded, can be more consequential for peace and stability than deterrence or coercion.
Equally important, the SCO provides the Global South with a stronger voice in global governance. It complements frameworks such as BRICS and the Belt and Road Initiative, aligning with the concept ofa community with a shared future for mankind.
By articulating perspectives from Asia, the Middle East and beyond, the SCO brings diversity into what has too often been a Western-centric discourse. It insists that rules must reflect not just the interests of a few powers but the concerns of many. Its approach to sovereignty, non-interference and cultural respect adds a much-needed counterpoint to universalist claims that too often mask particular interests.
This is why the SCO resonates with other cooperative ideals – from the BRICS spirit to the Silk Road ethos and the broader momentum of South-South cooperation. Together, these initiatives point towards a more horizontal form of globalization, one in which developing countries are not rule followers but rule shapers.
For many, the SCO embodies the possibility that a multipolar order can be not only more equitable but also more peaceful. By anchoring cooperation in respect rather than rivalry, it challenges the notion that power transitions must be accompanied by instability.
At a time when great-power confrontation dominates the headlines, the Tianjin Summit's message is worth heeding: Consultation is better than confrontation, equality is more sustainable than hierarchy and diversity, far from being an obstacle, can be the basis for trust. If the SCO lives up to this vision following the summit, it will prove to be more than a regional success story, a global model for international relations in the 21st century.
Xu Ying is a Beijing-based international affairs commentator for CGTN.
来源：中国网一点号
