Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation established in 2001.
It’s a Eurasian political, economic and military organisation aiming to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.
Prior to the creation of SCO in 2001, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.
Following the accession of Uzbekistan to the organisation in 2001, the Shanghai Five was renamed the SCO.
There are eight member states in the SCO at present. India and Pakistan became members in 2017.
The SCO Secretariat, based in Beijing, is the main permanent executive body of the SCO.
The organisation has two permanent bodies —
- the SCO Secretariat based in Beijing and
- the Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) based in Tashkent. RATS serves to promote cooperation of member states against the three evils of terrorism, separatism and extremism.

To strengthen mutual trust among the neighbouring member states.
To promote effective cooperation in various fields like economy, trade, politics, culture and research and technology.
To ensure peace, prosperity, security and stability in the region, and
To establish a democratic, fair and rational international eco-political order.

India recently participated in the Nowruz festivities at the SCO Secretariat in Beijing.

Nowruz is the Persian New Year and symbol of the onset of spring in the northern hemisphere.
It’s a universal celebration of new beginnings, wishing prosperity and welcoming the future.
March 21 was officially recognized in 2010 as International Nowruz Day by the United Nations. This year, it falls on March 20.
It is inscribed in the list of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity from India.

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