Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)

Why in news?

• The Chief Justice of India (CJI) recently addressed the 18th meeting of the Chief Justices/Chairpersons of the Supreme Courts of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states.
• The conference provided an opportunity for member and observer states to reflect upon the challenges that are common to their jurisdictions and emphasised the need for mutual cooperation and sharing of experiences and wisdom gathered.

About Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO):

• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), or Shanghai Pact, is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation.
• Currently the SCO comprises of Eight member states:
  • India, Pakistan, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
• Four observer states, namely Afghanistan, Iran, Belarus, and Mongolia.
• Six dialogue partners, namely Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, and Sri Lanka.
• India and Pakistan joined the SCO in 2017.
• In the 2021 SCO summit in Dushanbe, the members of SCO agreed to admit Iran as a member while Belarus has also begun the membership process.

Expansion of SCO:

• China and Russia are looking to frame the SCO as a counter to the West — particularly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• Moreover, China has also drawn a sharp contrast between SCO and NATO.
• It said that SCO is a cooperative organization based on non-alignment and not targeting a third party. On the other hand, NATO is based on Cold War thinking. The logic of NATO is to create new enemies to sustain its own existence.

Upcoming summits of SCO:

• The 2022 annual summit of the SCO was held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
• The 2023 SCO summit will be hosted by India.
  • Theme: 'Towards a SECURE SCO''.
  • The concept of SECURE stand for: 'S' for security for citizens, 'E' for economic development, 'C' for connectivity in the region, 'U' for unity, 'R' for respect of sovereignty and integrity, and 'E for environment protection.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

Which of the following countries are members of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)?

1. India

2. Pakistan

3. China

4. Russia.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 3 and 4 only

(b) 1, 3 and 4 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer