Prime ministers of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) agreed to strengthen regional cooperation in the fight against terrorism at a meeting in Tajikistan on Thursday.

During the meeting, Premier Wen Jiabao urged the leaders to work together to increase long-term efforts to fight separatism, terrorism and extremism, as well as combat transnational crime and drug trafficking.

He also proposed six ways to boost cooperation in trade, infrastructure building, agriculture and youth exchange.

Wen said the SCO was an effective mechanism in promoting regional peace, stability and development, and that China was willing to join with the other member states in strengthening the organization and safeguarding their common interests more effectively.

Founded in 2001, the organization includes China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

"Member states have supported each other when it comes to their core interests, and our cooperation in crucial international and regional issues is also improving," Wen said.

According to Itar-Tass, the heads of the six governments signed a package of budget-related documents on multilateral trade and economic cooperation.

"The SCO includes several Central Asian states where the threat of instability remains. That's why, in my view, the organization should and must have a bigger role in providing stability in the region," Kazakhstan's Prime Minister Karim Masimov told RIA Novosti.

At the ninth meeting of SCO prime ministers, Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said such security cooperation was necessary because of current security situations in member states.

"We are in urgent need of a mechanism of anti-drug cooperation, which involves SCO members and observers, as well as other international organizations operating in the region," he said.

Putin said armed forces or government institutions were not the only means of cracking down on terrorism, extremism and the drug trade, adding that "effective social and economic development is no less important".

He urged further cooperation in economics and finance among the six member states, especially in certain joint projects in the fields of infrastructure and energy.

Premier Wen on Thursday also met with his Tajik counterpart Akil Akilov.

Su Chang, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the organization's role in regional security was indispensable.

"When it was established, it was meant to protect the security of the region, and today it is still playing the most important role in keeping peace and stability and combating terrorism in the region."

Su said 2011 will mark the first decade of the organization's existence, adding that it will expand very slowly.

"It will take in new members since the subject was raised a long time ago. It is going to be the trend of the future, although the selection process will be long and will require very careful consideration," she said.