NEW DELHI: Apart from the New Delhi Declaration, SCO member-states also unanimously approved two other joint statements proposed by India under its presidency - one on countering radicalisation leading to terrorism, separatism and extremism, and another on digital transformation.India had proposed separate joint statements also on use of millets and sustainable lifestyles, but these could not be finalised because of a lack of consensus.While official sources didnt confirm if these statements couldnt be adopted because of objections by China, there were signs that India will continue to tread cautiously on issues of economic cooperation in the China-dominated Eurasian group.The government didnt endorse on Tuesday an Economic Development Strategy 2030 that was adopted by other members and is meant to focus on trade and investment to promote regional integration.
While the initiative was proposed by Tajikistan, the fact that it seemed to have Chinese imprints mostly in the way it was drafted was a deal-breaker for India.The New Delhi Declaration only said that the member-states considered it important to ensure the implementation of the SCO Economic Development Strategy 2030 adopted by ``interested countries.
Interestingly, Russia said in its readout that the SCO Heads of State Council approved the Strategy but didnt mention that it wasnt endorsed by all.Like in the past, India was again the only country in the group to not endorse Chinas BRI in the Declaration.In the joint statement on radicalisation, the member-states, while strongly condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, stressed that terrorism should not be associated with any religion, civilisation, nationality or ethnic group.Some of the initiatives announced included exchange of ``practical experience ensuring security of major international events held on the territory of SCO member-states and promotion of regional cooperation to counter radical ideologies.There was a declaration to conduct media campaigns at national level to prevent radicalisation and to implement programmes at national level to rehabilitate and reintegrate radicalised individuals into society and ``prevent their return to radical ideology or terrorist activity.
According to the statement on radicalisation, the SCO also advocated strengthening the role of women and youth in tackling radicalisation, while reaffirming their commitment to the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference in internal affairs.Importantly for India, the statement emphasised the inadmissibility of ``States using terrorist, separatist and extremist groups and their accomplices to implement particular political and geopolitical goals.The third joint statement, on digital transformation, underscored the need for SCO to join forces in unlocking the full potential of digitalization across all sectors of the economy, including the digitalization of the real economy.