An agreement on Iran obtaining the status of an official member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will be signed at its upcoming summit in Uzbekistan, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani Chafi has announced.
In a statement published on the Ministry’s Telegram account on Monday, Chafi said that “the process of admitting Iran to the SCO is nearing completion,” touting the Islamic Republic’s membership in the organization as “viable and mutually beneficial..
“An important country in the region, Iran has the potential to benefit the SCO thanks to its energy resources, great economic potential and location on the route of the North-South transport corridor,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman added.
The statement came as the press service of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev reported that discussions with his Iranian counterpart Ibrahim Raisi are due to take part during the SCO summit scheduled for September 15-16 in the city of Samarkand.
The press service added that Samarkand would also host “high-level talks” between Raisi and Mirziyoyev, who are expected to discuss through the development of full-blown Iran-Uzbekistan collaboration.
Iran currently has observer status within the SCO. In 2008, the country applied for full membership, but the organization refused to consider the application amid UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.
The SCO is a political, military and economic alliance, which was founded in 2001 and currently includes Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, China, India, and Pakistan.
Among the alliance's observer states are Afghanistan, Belarus and Mongolia, while Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Armenia, Nepal, Turkey and Sri Lanka have dialogue partner status.