Russia and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization: Some Elements of Strategy

The new geopolitical reality that resulted from the dissolution of the USSR created the conditions for the establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in 2001. The successful settlement of border issues between Russia and Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan and Tajikistan as well as with China also facilitated the process. With Uzbekistan joining the “Shanghai Five,” a new regional organization emerged. The SCO’s priorities were in the security sphere and the fight against the proliferation of drugs, illegal migration and organized crime, given the requirements of the times and the specific regional situation (including that in Afghanistan). As one of the active founders, Russia has always taken a leading role in the SCO’s organizational, political and legal formation, including setting specific trends and forms of cooperation, taking common measures, and holding events. During its presidency in 2008–2009 and 2014–2015, Moscow made additional efforts to strengthen cooperation among the SCO members in meeting new regional security challenges and to agree on coordinated positions on the key issues on the international and regional agenda. To increase the SCO’s credibility and political significance, Moscow emphasized its expansion, particularly with regard to the Eurasian Economic Union and the Silk Road Economic Belt. With global political and economic development growing more complicated, in order to revitalize Russia’s role in the SCO it is necessary to strengthen cooperation with China. The strategic character of bilateral relations reaffirmed at the Russian-Chinese summit in the summer of 2016 set a solid foundation