Shen Yueyue, vice-chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, attends the opening ceremony of the second non-governmental friendship forum of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) via video link on May 11, 2022. [Photo/npc.gov.cn]

Shen Yueyue, vice-chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the second non-governmental friendship forum of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) via video link on May 11, upon the invitation of the Senate chairperson of Uzbekistan.

Shen, also head of the SCO Committee on Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, said last year China hosted the inaugural forum in Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei province, which effectively promoted people-to-people ties.

She called for efforts to uphold the "Shanghai Spirit", promote collaborative development, boost interactions and mutual learning, and safeguard regional peace and security, so as to build a closer community with a shared future for the SCO.

The Tashkent Initiative was adopted at the event, emphasizing the role of the non-governmental friendship forum in strengthening mutual trust and consolidating good-neighborliness and friendship between member states.

Shen Yueyue, vice-chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, attends the opening ceremony of the second SCO non-governmental friendship forum of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) via video link on May 11, 2022. [Photo/npc.gov.cn]