Founding declaration frames multipolarity as a shared objective

Uzbekistan’s president attended the Dushanbe meeting as a guest, foreshadowing its later accession to the organization. Its inclusion reflected the importance of Central Asian states’ own diplomatic...

The leaders’ meeting concluded the consultations that called for a wider multilateral structure. The subsequent formation of the SCO in 2001 built on this transition agenda rather than appearing...

The five participants accepted Uzbekistan into the consultation framework ahead of the Shanghai summit. Its participation widened the grouping beyond the original five states and brought a major...

Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan adopted the declaration establishing the SCO in Shanghai. The new body carried forward the earlier border agreements while widening the...

The founding declaration said the SCO was not directed against other states or regions and described openness to dialogue and cooperation. This self-description complicates later portrayals of the SCO...

The founding moment placed the so-called “three evils” at the center of regional security cooperation. These terms were politically consequential: they could address real cross-border violence, yet...

The six member states signed the SCO Charter, setting out the organization’s objectives, principles, bodies and working procedures. The Charter gave legal form to a regional institution built on...

The SCO Charter recognizes sovereign equality, territorial integrity and non-interference. These principles respond to histories of foreign domination and intervention, while their use by...

The member states signed an agreement establishing the RATS framework to coordinate information and counterterrorism work. The agreement institutionalized security cooperation; its broad remit makes...

The summit paired the Charter with supporting agreements and declarations. This step changed the SCO from an annual leaders’ process into a more formal intergovernmental organization, though the...