FAQ

Iran becomes ninth member of SCO group

Tags: International Relations

Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Secretary-General Zhang Ming has informed on 16 July 2022 that Iran will become the ninth member country of the SCO.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is all set to expand with Iran joining the group as its ninth member, while Belarus has applied for membership.

Important Facts:

• The decision to include Iran was made at last year's Dushanbe summit and Belarus has applied for its membership.

• Also Belarus has applied for membership of the SCO. Zhang said the decision to include Iran was taken at a conference held in Dushanbe last year.

• Belarus has applied to join the SCO.

• The SCO summit will be held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan from September 15-16.

• Zhang said the SCO member states adopt a consensus mechanism to decide on the joining of a new member and that Belarus' application will be considered.

• This is the first expansion of the organization after India and Pakistan were included in the SCO in 2017.

• The SCO is headquartered in Beijing and is an eight-member security grouping comprising China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan. In which now Iran is going to join as the 9th member.

• The online SCO conference was organized in the last two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• This is the first expansion of the SCO after India and Pakistan joined the grouping in 2017.

• The significance of this expansion is that it reflects the growing international influence of the SCO and also shows that the principles of the SCO Charter are being widely accepted.

• India will host the SCO summit next year, and Varanasi has been chosen as the first "tourism and cultural capital" of the SCO region.

Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO):

• The SCO is a Eurasian economic, political and security-related organization of nine countries whose goal is to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.

• It was formed in the year 2001.

• The SCO Charter was signed in the year 2002 and came into force in the year 2003.

• It includes China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Iran.

• India and Pakistan had subscribed to it in 2017. SCO member states work to enhance mutual cooperation against terrorism and for regional peace.

• It is also the world's largest regional organization by population and the largest consumer market.

Origin of SCO:

• Before the formation of the SCO in 2001, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.

• The Shanghai Five (1996) originated as a series of border demarcation and demilitarization talks, conducted by the four former Soviet republics to ensure stability along the borders with China.

• The Shanghai Five were renamed the SCO after Uzbekistan joined the organization in 2001.

• On September 17, 2021, it was announced that Iran would accept full-time membership of the SCO.