Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit shows divergent interests

Last week, India virtually hosted the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, which saw attendance from influential leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese leader Xi Jinping, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The summit was significant as it formalized Iran’s full membership, with Belarus potentially joining soon.

Key topics of discussion included infrastructure connectivity, cross-border security, insurgency, terrorism, and the situation in Afghanistan.

Despite shared strategic interests, the summit also highlighted growing tensions between India and China, largely due to border disputes and differing alliances.

India has maintained its stance of non-alignment, implicitly criticizing China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and defense ties with Pakistan.

India is also expanding defense cooperation with China’s rivals in the South China Sea, including the Philippines.

While Russia faces economic recession and political instability at home, Putin expressed hope for enhanced strategic cooperation within the SCO.

Trade between Russia and China has increased significantly, and India has become Russia’s largest oil customer.

Including Iran, another strategic partner facing Western sanctions, could further facilitate trade and infrastructure development within Asia.

Despite divergences, all SCO members are committed to facilitating a more multipolar international order.

However, India, a member of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue along with the US, Australia, and Japan, does not face any Western sanctions and continues to maintain robust trade and defense ties with Russia.

The differences were evident during the SCO summit, with Modi implicitly criticizing China’s BRI and expressing concerns over cross-border terrorism, an indirect reference to Pakistan.

As geopolitical differences continue to widen, the future dynamics of the SCO will be critical to watch.

THE SCO BACKGROUND

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is a Eurasian political, economic, international security, and defense organization established by China and Russia in 2001.

It is the world’s largest regional organization in terms of geographic scope and population, covering approximately 60% of the area of Eurasia and 40% of the world’s population.

The SCO is the successor to the Shanghai Five, formed in 1996 between the People’s Republic of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, and Tajikistan.

In June 2001, the leaders of these nations and Uzbekistan met in Shanghai to announce a new organization with deeper political and economic cooperation.

In June 2017, it expanded to eight states, with India and Pakistan.

Iran joined the group in July 2023. Several countries are engaged as observers or dialogue partners.