On April 24 and 25, 2008, the 1st Insurance Industry’s Guarantee for the Social and Economic Cooperation between the SCO Member States International Seminar was successfully held in Moscow, Russia. CCPIT Vice-Chairman Yu Ping led a delegation consisting of nearly 40 members to attend the seminar.

Russian vice Prime Minister Naryshkin, Mr. Mezentsev, Chairman of the Council of Federation of the Federal Assembly of Russia and Chairman of the SCO Business Council, Mr. Shokhin, former Russian vice Prime Minister and Chairman of Russia Enterprises Federation, Mr. Lomakin, Director of Russia Insurance Regulatory Bureau, Mrs. Bobova, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of Russia, Chinese Ambassador Liu Guchang to Russia, Commercial Minister Counselor Gao Xiyun of the Chinese Embassy in Russia, Chairman Batalov of the Kazakhstan Business Council, Chairman Perifilev of the Kyrgyzstan Business Council and vice Chairman Sangov of the Tajikistan Business Council attended the seminar. Approximately 160 representatives from the commercial and industry circles and insurance circles of the six SCO member states attended the seminar. Chairman Mezentsev of the SCO Business Council hosted the seminar.

Vice Prime Minister Naryshkin pointed out that after six years’ development, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has become an authoritative international organization due to the respect the SCO has paid to the historical traditions and national situations of each member state, fully indicatives of the powerful unity among member states. Since its establishment two years ago, the SCO Business Council has done considerable work and has contributed a great deal to the consolidation of SCO. The business circle is the engine for economic development so the Business Council is supposed to actively recommend development priorities, to create new cooperation methods to organically combine project profits with social effects, and therefore to make new contribution to solidify regional stability and improve living standards of residents. The holding of this seminar indicates that business circles of member states have realized the significance of cooperation and have begun to taken actions. He expected that exchanges and cooperation between business circles of member states will gain substantial results.

Vice-Chairman Yu Ping stated that the insurance industry seminar is of great importance. China, Russia and other SCO member states possess great potential for communication and cooperation on electronics, machinery manufacturing, logistics, telecommunication, wood industry and other fields. Cooperation in all these fields requires support form insurance and finance industries and the insurance industry will definitely play a even more important role in regional economic and trade cooperation among the SCO member states. 

Insurance and finance firms from the six SCO member states carried out vigorous discussions about the subjects of the seminar. Vice President Zhou Ying of China Life, Senior Expert Jiang Shuwei of the China Development Bank and Vice General Manager Liu Yongxin of China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation made speeches on topics such as the development of China’s insurance industry, the current situation of export and credit insurance, the international cooperation of insurance industries in regions and multilateral insurance guarantee mechanism on behalf of the Chinese enterprises.

In his summarizing speech, Mr. Mezentsev, Chairman of the Council of Federation of the Federal Assembly of Russia and Chairman of the SCO Business Council, pointed out that the vigorous discussion carried out among the attending representatives has revealed the sincere hope of member states that the SCO should strengthen cooperation on insurance. The Business Council shall seize the opportunity and further promote the development of cooperation in other fields.

After the seminar, Russian vice Prime Minister Naryshkin and chairmen of business councils of member states met the journalists together.