Kids perform at a reception in Beijing on June 15 to mark the 25th anniversary of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a summit in Bishkek on Sept 1, following preparatory events on Aug 31, a date that holds special significance as Aug 31 is Kyrgyzstan's Independence Day.

Since its founding in Shanghai in 2001, the SCO has grown to a scale that was hard to imagine 25 years ago. The SCO now has 10 member states: China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, Iran and Belarus.

Together they cover about 36 million square kilometers and are home to more than 3.4 billion people. The organization therefore represents one of the world's largest concentrations of territory, population and economic potential.

For much of its early history, the organization was primarily a security mechanism. The fight against terrorism, separatism, extremism, drug trafficking and transnational crime formed the core of its institutional development.

That function remains essential, but the theme of this year's summit, "25 Years of the SCO: Together for Sustainable Peace, Development, and Prosperity", highlights the broadening of the expanded group's focus from security to economic development across Eurasia.

Recent SCO decisions have established new specialized structures, including the Universal Center for Countering Security Challenges and Threats, the Anti-Drug Center, and mechanisms for dealing with information security and organized crime.

But the economic dimension is impossible to separate from security and it has come to the fore. A railway, energy pipeline, digital network or payment system can be as strategically important as a security agreement. This is where the Bishkek summit becomes a test of the organization's maturity.

The expected Bishkek Declaration will provide the political framework for the next stage of SCO development.

Other documents under preparation concern security cooperation, information security, combating illegal drugs and the functioning of specialized institutions.

Yet the most consequential question may be economic.

Kyrgyzstan has placed transport connectivity, financial cooperation and digitalization among the priorities of its chairmanship. The proposed SCO Development Bank is particularly important. When established, the bank could eventually provide a mechanism for financing infrastructure and investment in the SCO region without relying exclusively on Western financial institutions.

This does not mean that the SCO should attempt to create an isolated economic bloc. Such an approach would contradict the interests of most member states, which pursue multi-vector foreign policies and maintain extensive relations with Europe, the United States, Japan and other economies.

Three concepts should define the SCO's next stage: connectivity, pragmatism, and autonomy.

Connectivity means more than constructing railways. It requires compatible customs procedures, digital documentation, logistics platforms, energy networks, telecommunications, and financial settlements. The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is particularly significant because it can reshape Central Asia's economic geography.

It is not simply another railway; it can connect China more directly with Central Asian and, subsequently, European, Middle Eastern, and other markets.

The same idea holds for the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route. Unlocking Central Asia's full potential requires faster border procedures, reliable cargo insurance, digital customs systems, predictable tariffs and solid physical infrastructure.

Pragmatism is equally important. The SCO contains countries with different political systems and strategic interests. Yet these differences need not prevent its members from pursuing common interests and practical cooperation.

The third concept is autonomy. SCO members are increasingly interested in reducing vulnerabilities created by excessive dependence on external financial and technological systems. This trend includes expanding settlements in national currencies, greater use of the yuan, developing alternative payment infrastructure, and the proposed SCO Development Bank.

At the May 2026 meeting of SCO finance ministers and central bank governors in Bishkek, participants discussed national-currency settlements, financial digitalization and new mechanisms for financial cooperation.

China occupies a special position in this transformation. Over the past two decades, China's role in Central Asia has changed fundamentally. Chinese companies now participate in the construction of roads, railways, energy projects, telecommunications, electric transport, digital commerce, and advanced manufacturing.

This transformation is visible in everyday life. Chinese electric buses have entered the public transport systems of Central Asian cities. Chinese electric vehicles increasingly dominate new-car imports. Chinese smartphones, digital platforms and consumer electronics have become ordinary features of urban life.

The Belt and Road Initiative is central to this process. Its particular importance for Central Asia is geographical: the region's greatest historical disadvantage — its landlocked position — can become an advantage if Eurasia develops efficient continental transport corridors.

China's broader international role also matters for the SCO. Beijing has increasingly combined infrastructure, finance, technology and diplomacy. The China-SCO Artificial Intelligence Application Cooperation Center, whose construction plan was unveiled at the China-SCO Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Forum in Tianjin in May 2025, highlights the growing technological dimension of China's engagement with the organization.

The SCO should nevertheless resist the temptation to define itself as an anti-Western alliance. That would weaken rather than strengthen it. Its members have no common interest in bloc confrontation.

The more powerful message is constructive: Eurasia needs additional institutions capable of protecting trade, financing infrastructure, managing supply-chain risks and facilitating technological cooperation.

This is particularly important in an era of geopolitical volatility. The SCO's next task, therefore, should be to build resilience through payment and clearing mechanisms, liquidity arrangements, cargo insurance, transport coordination, energy cooperation and digital-security systems that allow commerce to continue when external financial or political pressures increase.

The organization is not replacing the existing world order. Nor should it claim to. Its significance is more practical.

For Kyrgyzstan, the Bishkek summit is more than just a diplomatic gathering. It tests whether a relatively small Central Asian country can bring together leaders from 10 major Eurasian nations and turn symbolic gestures into concrete agreements.

For the SCO itself, the anniversary marks a significant milestone in its development.

Twenty-five years ago, the organization was founded with a focus on regional security. Today, at 25, its goal is broader: to transform geographic closeness into economic ties, turn differences into practical cooperation, and leverage economic influence to build lasting institutions.

If Bishkek succeeds in driving this change, the summit will be remembered not only as an anniversary but as an important step toward shaping the future of Eurasian collaboration for the next twenty-five years.

The author is a former prime minister of the Kyrgyz Republic.