SCO to review Iran, Pakistan membership bids

The new Secretary-General of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Muratbek Sansyzbayevich Imanaliev told a press conference on Wednesday in Beijing that the bloc is assessing membership applications of Iran and Pakistan submitted this year.

He did not specify when a decision would be made, but earlier reports indicated that the group has already started reviewing the criteria for new memberships.

Imanaliev said member states were planning to step up cooperation on regional security issues with a special focus on anti-terrorism efforts and possible economic cooperation.

The SCO will hold two main summits this year. One will be held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan for a series of bilateral memorandums outlining cooperation areas including economy, trade, science and culture.

The other will be held in Kabul on peace settlement in Afghanistan, responding to anti-terrorism concerns and discussing ways to provide economic and humanitarian aids to the war-torn country for regional peace and stability.

China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are currently members of the SCO. Iran, an observer member since 2005, has been seeking to join the 9-year-old international organization since 2008.

Iran's membership in the SCO would help the country be included in a powerful coalition with its regional allies China and Russia.

Some consider the SCO to be a potential future counterweight to NATO influence in Eurasia.

/Press TV/