The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will work together with the United Nations to play a more active role in addressing Afghanistan issues, Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Cheng Guoping said Wednesday.

The 12th Meeting of the Council of Heads of Member States of the SCO will be held in Beijing on June 6-7. Afghan President Hamid Karzai will attend the meeting as a guest.

Founded in 2001, the SCO groups China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Cheng said the internal issues in Afghanistan have affected regional security and stability.

"The SCO has been cooperating closely with the Afghan side to address the issues," said the Chinese official, adding that the SCO has established a liaison group with Afghanistan and held six rounds of deputy-foreign-minister-level consultations on the issues.

The SCO supports Afghanistan's efforts to realize self-governance and ethnic reconciliation, Cheng added.

Earlier this month, foreign ministers of the SCO members convened in Beijing and agreed to submit Afghanistan's application for observer status for review during the June summit.

Currently, observers of the SCO include Mongolia, Pakistan, Iran and India.

(Xinhua News Agency May 23, 2012)