Recently the 20th meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Heads of Government was held.
SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organization. It was announced in the year 2001 in Shanghai (China).
This organization originated from the Shanghai Five (China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan) group of the year 1998.
India and Pakistan had joined this organization in a meeting held in Astana in 2017. Issues raised by India-
- The SCO is deliberately violating the principles and norms of the SCO Charter by raising bilateral issues (Pakistan and China are indirectly referred to).
- India underscored the weakness of global institutions (as exposed by COVID-19) in acting quickly and efficiently. At the same time, it called for a reformed and reactivated multilateralism, reflecting the realities of the present.
- In an indirect criticism of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), India called for making connectivity initiatives consultative, transparent and participatory.
Importance of SCO for India
- SCO will enable India, as an integral part of the Eurasian security grouping, to neutralise centrifugal forces arising from religious extremism and terrorism in the region.
- It provides India with a platform where it can engage constructively with both China and Pakistan.
- This will help India gain access to the minerals and energy resource rich Central Asian region.
Source – The Hindu
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