TIANJIN, China, September 1. The annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has started in Tianjin, China, Trend reports.
Leaders from 21 countries and representatives of more than 10 international organizations are attending the large-scale event. In the context of the summit, the ratification of pivotal documents by the member states, encompassing the organization’s strategic development blueprint for the forthcoming decade, is anticipated.
The SCO was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. The SCO has 10 full-fledged members: Russia, Belarus, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Currently, Afghanistan and Mongolia hold observer status, while Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egypt, Cambodia, Armenia, Qatar, Kuwait, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Sri Lanka hold dialogue partner status.
The main objectives of the SCO are ensuring stability and security in the region and developing economic cooperation and energy partnership, as well as scientific and cultural activities. Meetings of heads of state of the member countries have been held annually since 2002, and in total, 23 summits have been convened.
Azerbaijan, a proactive entity within the global governance framework, has been enhancing its strategic partnerships with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in recent years. The resolution to confer dialogue partner status upon Azerbaijan was ratified during the summit convened in Ufa in July 2015. The domains of collaborative engagement between Azerbaijan and the organization were encapsulated in a memorandum executed in 2016. Subsequently, Azerbaijan has been dynamically engaged in a multitude of initiatives orchestrated under the auspices of the SCO framework.
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