SCO SUMMIT
- November 29, 2020
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Subject: International Events
Context: India will host the Heads of Government Council meeting of the eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) , but Prime Minister Narendra will not attend the meeting, which will be chaired by Vice-President instead.
Concept:
- It will be the first time that a summit-level meeting will be held under India’s chairmanship, since it gained full membership of the organisation in 2017.
- This summit is held annually at the level of Prime Ministers of SCO and deals primarily with the trade and economic agenda of the organisation.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
- SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation.
- It’s a Eurasian political, economic and military organisation aiming to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.
- The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and entered into force in 2003.
- The SCO’s official languages are Russian and Chinese. It has two Permanent Bodies,
- SCO Secretariat in Beijing, and
- Executive Committee of the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent.
- The Chairmanship of SCO is by rotation for a year by Member States.
Genesis:
- Prior to the creation of SCO in 2001, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.
- Shanghai Five (1996) emerged from a series of border demarcation and demilitarization talks which the four former Soviet republics held with China to ensure stability along the borders.
- Following the accession of Uzbekistan to the organisation in 2001, the Shanghai Five was renamed the SCO.
- India and Pakistan became members in 2017.