When Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a common home of solidarity and mutual trust at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's Astana Summit in July 2024, few imagined the cultural ties it would spark along the Silk Roads.
Since its inception as the Shanghai Five, the SCO has grown into the largest regional organization in the world. Alongside security cooperation, its cultural agenda has become a driving force for cross-border collaboration.
On July 7, 2025, Qingdao hosted the 22nd Meeting of Ministers of Culture of the SCO, bringing together cultural ministers and SCO Secretary-General Nurlan Yermekbayev. Delegates shared plans to document endangered traditions and preserve heritage under threat from conflict and looting.
This year's meeting in Tianjin coincided with the 10th anniversary of Palmyra's destruction in Syria—an iconic reminder of how ideology and plunder can ravage history. In 2024, ministers agreed to exchange expertise on combating artifact trafficking and preserving traditions, highlighting the intersection of security and culture.
Across the SCO region, treasures from ancient Silk Roads sites stretch over borders, from Central Asia's desert vaults to the Chinese mainland's oasis towns. To protect this shared legacy, China has offered hands-on support. Wang Jianxin, chief scientist at the Collaborative Research Center for Archaeology of the Silk Roads, notes that Chinese teams are conducting temporary protection measures, building protective sheds and installing monitoring systems to keep relics safe during excavations.
As the SCO charts a path forward, its Silk Roads initiative offers a powerful example of how cultural heritage can unite young global citizens, entrepreneurs and changemakers—turning history's age-old routes into bridges for the 21st century.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
