Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- The international conference "Samarkand SCO Summit: Contribution to Regional and International Security, Sustainable Development" kicked off in Tashkent today.

Speaking at the event with a welcoming speech, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Vladimir Norov emphasized that the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of States of the SCO grandiosely completed the successful chairmanship of Uzbekistan in the Organization, which was noted for its dynamics, richness and content.

This was confirmed by the holding of more than 100 events at various levels and a record number of signed documents following the summit. The Samarkand summit distinguished itself by its representativeness, for the first time the leaders of 14 countries, heads of 10 international organizations gathered at the SCO platform, which considered topical issues on the international and regional agenda in multilateral and bilateral formats.

The agreements reached at the end of the meeting of the heads of states brought practical multifaceted cooperation within the SCO to a new level.

The significance of the summit was also due to the new geostrategic and geoeconomic changes that are still unfolding in the region and beyond.

The event, organized by the ISMI under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan, the International Institute of Central Asia with the assistance of the Executive Committee of the RATS SCO, brought together more than 30 prominent representatives from among the expert and analytical circles of the SCO member states, as well as a number of countries far abroad, including the USA, Belgium, Great Britain, Germany, France, Hungary and other countries.