Sputnik - Russia sees Iran as the next candidate for full membership in the SCO after the accession of India and Pakistan.


ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik)�� Russia sees Iran as�the next candidate for�full membership in�the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) after�the accession of�India and Pakistan, Russia's Special Presidential Envoy to�the SCO Bakhtier Khakimov said Thursday during�the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).


"The next candidate, according to�Russia, following�India and Pakistan, should be Iran, as�well as�other states that meet our criteria for�the SCO membership," Khakimov said.


According to�the envoy, the SCO has a great potential to�become the key international platform.
"It is about�the potential that the SCO has�� 24 percent of�the world GDP after�the accession. Today we see the wide geographic scope of�the organization�� 18 member states, observers and dialogue partners," Khakimov stressed.


The SCO is an intergovernmental international organization, established on�June 15, 2001 in�Shanghai by�Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Russia and Uzbekistan. At the summit in�Uzbekistan in�June 2016, the SCO leaders signed memorandums on�the accession of�India and Pakistan to�the organization. The SCO�s 2017 summit will be held in�Astana on�June 8-9.

SPIEF, held in�Russia's second largest city of�St. Petersburg between�Thursday and Saturday, is a major global platform for�representatives of�business community to�cooperate and discuss crucial economic issues facing Russia and the world in�general. Sputnik News Agency is the official media partner of�the event.