When in 2001 the leaders of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan founded the Shanghai cooperation organization (SCO), concerned pocket intelligence, NATO sounded the alarm. The foreign press began to appear about the fact that this international organization was created as a military bloc to counterbalance NATO.
However, the SCO has a very different purpose, and a military unit, this organization can not be considered. Of course, one of the main tasks of the Union is the strengthening of stability and security in the vast territorial space of countries-participants of SCO. This includes combating terrorism, separatism, extremism and traffic in drugs. In addition to security, countries are interested in development of economic cooperation, energy partnership, scientific and cultural cooperation in the SCO framework.
In 2015, the heads of the countries “the Shanghai six” met in Ufa, where he took the decision on the beginning of the transformation process of the “six” to “eight”. Yes, with the summit in Ufa started the process of integration in the SCO India and Pakistan, which ended at the summit in 2016 in Tashkent. And that’s good, as it has already had a significant impact on strengthening bridges of dialogue between new Delhi and Islamabad, which may be able to reverse the protracted conflict.
The Tashkent meeting of heads of SCO States in 2016, which was launched yesterday, may be the most significant for all history of existence of the organization. It is very global the stated it goals, the implementation of which in the medium term looks very realistic, and therefore it inspires awe.
So, the long-awaited lifting of sanctions against Iran allows, finally, to take this country in the SCO, as claims Tehran has already filed a long time ago. And here begins the most interesting. When Iran joins the SCO, the “Shanghai nine”, in fact, will control approximately 70% of Asia and 40% of the territory of Europe. Moreover, almost all of the Euro-Asian transit route will be under its monopoly. Including the Suez canal, after Egypt also claim to membership in the SCO. And if possible Egypt, the United States then just accused Vladimir Putin is some evil plan on this. However, one should not forget that the SCO is not only Russia.
SCO has eight member countries (and soon nine), which won’t slide to the level of discussion platforms of the CIS and ASEAN. Leaders of the SCO countries want to make this Union what did not happen the European Union has fallen into a dull bureaucracy. The SCO leaders want to unite Asia into a flexible, but very strong political and (most importantly) economic structure that could control the most promising markets, but still possessed sufficient military power to protect its sovereignty. Much the same was trying to do Muammar Gaddafi, creating a new USA – United States of Africa. Gaddafi is not allowed. As for SCO, then forewarned is forearmed.
Now, the SCO includes the first, fourth, and sixth economy in the world (China, India and Russia), and about military power and even can not speak. However, the SCO for all its assets seeks to open military bases around the world. Enough of the SCO to protect its own borders.
Today, the SCO is still making offers of the Western partners, primarily the European Union, offering to integrate into a new system of international relations. The European Union anything intelligible has not responded yet. Obviously, the Europeans had no taste the prospect of becoming the “six” of the United States in case of signing of the agreement on Transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP). Well, they still have a chance to contribute to EU – SCO. After all, the European Union and the USA interesting to the Commonwealth only as long as it will not be able to master the necessary technology. Because SCO is going to do it in the medium term, the EU quite a bit of time.
