Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders Thursday agreed that attempts to solve a problem through use of force would never work, and instead it would hinder a comprehensive settlement.

A comprehensive solution to existing problems can only be found by considering the interests of all the parties and including them in the negotiation process, the leaders said.

A joint declaration at the end of the SCO summit in the Tajik capital said that attempts to strengthen a country's security at the expense of others' was not conducive to maintaining security and stability across the globe.

The SCO members expressed deep concern over the South Ossetia issue, and urged all the parties involved to resolve it peacefully through dialogue.

The leaders welcomed the six-point proposal, reached in Moscow on Aug 12, to resolve the issue, and praised Russia for its positive role in promoting peace and cooperation in the region.

On prevention of conflicts, the SCO leaders vowed to abide by the UN Charter and relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the basic norms governing international law. The UN Security Council, entrusted with the major responsibility of safeguarding world peace and security, should play a leading role in this regard, they said.

(L-R) Presidents Kurmanbek Bakiyev of Kyrgyzstan, Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan, Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, Hu Jintao of China, Emomali Rakhmon of Tajikistan, Dmitry Medvedev of Russia and Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan pose for a picture before the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Dushanbe August 27, 2008. [Agencies]

The declaration was signed by presidents Hu Jintao, Dmitry Medvedev (Russia), Nursultan Nazarbayev (Kazakhstan), Kurmanbek Bakiyev (Kyrgyzstan), Emomali Rakhmon (Tajikistan) and Islam Karimov (Uzbekistan). Leaders of SCO observer countries, Iran, India, Mongolia and Pakistan, attended the meeting too.

The SCO leaders' joint communiqu said the Treaty on Long-term Good-neighborly Relations, Friendship and Cooperation, signed in the Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek last year, is very important for strengthening cooperation to tackle new challenges and threats.

They praised the smooth implementation of a three-year cooperation outline on the fight against terrorism, separatism and extremism.

The SCO's joint military exercises such as the anti-terror drill, code-named "Peace Mission 2007", in Russia have helped improve its anti-terror capabilities and will continue to be conducted.

The leaders urged SCO members to fulfill their commitment to fight drug trafficking. They asked the chiefs of SCO members' anti-drug agencies to hold a special meeting in the first half of next year to discuss the setting up of an anti-drug mechanism to combat drug trafficking, especially from Afghanistan.

Expressing concern over the possibility of advanced information technology being used to sabotage international stability and security, they said it is necessary to work out an inter-governmental accord to counter it.

The SCO members signed treaties on holding anti-terrorism drills, and the crackdown on arms and ammunition trafficking.

On the promotion of international exchanges, the leaders agreed to boost SCO's cooperation with India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan by taking their interests into account. They decided to set up a special team to consider the expansion of the SCO, too.

(Xinhua/China Daily August 29, 2008)