...short-term perspective member states are likely to discuss India's full membership in this agency. But will this step actually meet India's interests as well as the interests of its SCO partners?

Some time ago Indian Ambassador to Russia Krishnan Raghunath in his interview to Nezavisimaya Gazeta said that the war in Iraq influenced the interests of different countries worldwide, including such strategically important and large Asian power as India. New threats to global stability, including the problem of international terrorism, strengthen its aspiration to ensure national security, in particular--by joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. (1)

It is very important for India that interstate cooperation within SCO "is not directed against any other nations." India supports SCO's goals in stimulating economic cooperation, regional stability, struggle against terrorism and religious extremism." And the cooperation between India, Russia and China will promote "the creation of a rational world order" in view of the role they are playing in the world community and their "similar approach to most key issues." The ambassador also emphasized that "India wants to play a constructive and active role in SCO." (2)

In our opinion, as early as today the scientific community of our countries could begin the discussion devoted to multilateral cooperation within the framework of this agency (in the context of India's preparation for full membership in SCO). We believe that rather wide prospects are opening in this respect.

Some time ago Russia's Ambassador to India V.I. Trubnikov in one of his interviews said (3) that our countries now are challenged with plenty of difficult tasks which can be solved only by applying joint efforts, such as:

** first, countering the present-day challenges and threats which increasingly affect the security of our states and the international community in general, while interdependence of all the countries worldwide is strengthening due to globalization reasons. The most urgent problem here is posed by the international terrorism and related "non-conventional threats;"

** second, interstate cooperation in the United Nations while discussing close or common positions on key issues, whether this concerns the strengthening of the United Nations' role in the present-day security architecture, or struggle against nuclear threat, or methods of peace-making operations in the so-called "hot points," or UN restructuring, which appears to be the issue India is particularly interested in;

** third, strengthening the interstate political cooperation to achieve a more fair multi-polar world order and regional cooperation development in Asia.

This list could also be added with quite a number of key interaction areas in the military sphere. They include such directions as deepening military-technological cooperation through joint projects; joint participation in vocational training of military personnel, first of all through peace-making programs; perfection of operative compatibility of staffs and armies in their joint application; interaction in peace-keeping operations under the mandate of the United Nations and regional international organizations; joint development of research projects devoted to urgent security problems; and, finally, stage-by-stage preparation for full-scale, universal and multilateral cooperation within the framework of SCO.

However, possible SCO enlargement causes restrained anxiety in the West. For example, according to the US newspaper Christian Science Monitor, "Russia and China...

NOTE: All illustrations and photos have been removed from this article.



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