Geopolitics › Alliances & institutions › BRICS and its 2024–25 expansion
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
Since 2001; 10 members· Alliance or organization
FactTreaties, membership, measured data, events.
A Eurasian security and economic forum led by China and Russia, with ten members including India, Pakistan and Iran.
See it on the Geopolitics map →The picture
Founded in Shanghai on June 15, 2001 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, it grew from a 1996 border pact. India and Pakistan joined in 2017, Iran in 2023 and Belarus in 2024. Members hold about 40% of the world's people. It coordinates counter-terrorism from Tashkent and holds joint 'Peace Mission' drills, but has no mutual-defense clause. At the 2025 Tianjin summit, Xi pushed for an SCO development bank.
Why it matters
It shows a large non-Western grouping operating outside US-led institutions and gives China and Russia a stage in Central Asia, but rivalries inside it limit its punch.
Key facts and numbers
The 2002 SCO Charter, summit declarations such as Tianjin 2025, membership records and the published activities of its counter-terrorism body.
What to watch
Debated: whether it is an emerging bloc or a talking shop, given India–Pakistan and India–China feuds, and whether China's proposed bank ever gets real money.
Connections (2)
▸India is a member of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)Fact
The relationship
India joined the SCO in 2017, alongside rival Pakistan, to keep a seat in Central Asian affairs and stop the forum being run purely by China and Russia. It uses it for regional diplomacy but refuses to endorse China's Belt and Road, and has rejected some joint texts, such as a 2025 statement that omitted a terror attack in Kashmir.
Since when and why
Full member since the Astana summit, June 2017; Modi attended the Tianjin summit, August 31–September 1, 2025, his first China trip in seven years.
How we know
SCO membership records, summit declarations and Indian foreign ministry statements explaining its positions.
What to watch
Whether India's presence moderates the SCO or simply lets India hedge between Washington and Beijing; analysts are split.
▸Russia–China 'no limits' partnership anchors Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)Widely agreed
The relationship
The SCO grew out of the 1996 'Shanghai Five' border pact led by China and Russia, which still co-lead it. They use it to coordinate on Central Asian security and to showcase a non-Western grouping; India, Pakistan, Iran and Belarus have since joined, diluting its unity.
Since when and why
Founded in Shanghai, June 15, 2001; Tianjin summit, August 31–September 1, 2025, hosted by Xi with Putin and India's Modi attending.
How solid?
The SCO charter (2002), summit declarations and membership records. Most analysts agree the two powers anchor it.
What to watch
Analysts debate whether the SCO is a real bloc or mostly a forum; India's rivalries with China and Pakistan limit what it can agree on.