LETHALFORCE
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China wants Pakistan in and Russia wants India in, both can be accomadated. China does not have the final say and it will most likely not be either/or type of situation like NATO.
India and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)
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Why is this an better Union than BRICS? I thought BRICS where a much better alternative, what is China trying to prove with this silly deal?
LETHALFORCE
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BRICS is a economic term for 4 developing nations; this is a platform for regional issues that currently does not exist in Asia, with a possible military/security angle.
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Why cant BRICS be more militaristic? Its some what the same nations with the same aspiration. I think this is born about insecurtiy in the Chinese mind.
I think India is better of takeing an leadership to unite South east Aisan nations with Japan rather than join this loosely packed system. Just like EU has cultural similarities the people of South east Asia have a lot of similarities with India and Vise Verse.
LETHALFORCE
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Better to be neutral or involved in both sides that suit your different interests than to choose only one side,depending on how things go you can lean towards one side more.
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BRICS is just something that Goldman Sachs made up. It's barely even an official organization.
Its primary focus, if anything, is on increasing trade and investment between member countries. There's no way it can become a NATO-like organization.
We should focus on making SAARC the Indian version of the Warsaw Pact. Where India is the pimp and Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, etc. are our bitches. Of course, that requires a government with an aggressive foreign policy, which we don't have.
LETHALFORCE
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Who will join SCO?: Voice of Russia
Who will join SCO?
This is the only organization that brings together Russia, China and Central Asian nations. It was initiated just after the collapse of the Soviet Union to mitigate the challenges caused by border issues. But right now the organization aims at building real economic, military and political alliances in Central Asia, Russia and China. So, it will be a united block of countries with similar political regimes and economic interests. Many of them are members of the same military blocks, and there are some anti-terrorist structures inside the SCO as well.
For American audience – SCO members are China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, whereas the observer status is held by Iran, India, Mongolia and Pakistan. Right?
Right. And at the summit that we are awaiting there'll be a new charter, which will stipulate the accession of new members. There are two members in line – Iran and India. But one of the charter articles will see that nations under international sanctions – and that is Iran – will not be allowed to join the SCO. So, in the next year or several years – that depends on negotiations – we and China will see India join this club, which will change the whole dynamics in the organization, because now the two main powers are China and Russia. But, of course, you cannot compare their economic power – China has second largest GDP and Russia's is just eighth. So, we still have one major pool of influence and dominance in this organization, and the accession of India will make it more democratic. That's why Russia and President Medvedev will lobby India's joining the organization.
Obviously, India's membership won't be a problem. But do you think that using the SCO to encourage Iran to either change or drop its nuclear plans might make it easier for Iran to join the SCO?
I don't think so, because it doesn't seem that Iran would abandon its nuclear programme for membership of any organization, be it SCO or WTO. I don't think that it will be possible for Iran to join, because Tehran wants SCO membership just to have a shield, because SCO countries have obligations to defend one another. It's not like NATO's Article 5, but still. So, Tehran expects the SCO accession to help it deal with the western pressure. I don't think that Moscow and Beijing want to create more problems with Washington, or Brussels, or any European capital in regard to Iran.
Apparently, Russian President Medvedev is going to meet with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Afghanistan is obviously very important in this region. What do you think his talks with Karzai will entail? What do you think they will be talking about? Obviously, about the US troops' withdrawal, but what role will Russia play in what happens after American troops are gone?
Russia tried to make an impression that it would play a role in Afghanistan, but because of obvious reasons the topic of any Russian troops returning to Afghanistan is too sensitive for Russian audience, and I don't think that any Russian leadership would consider it. In terms of economic help, Russia hasn't got sufficient funds, as for example China, or India, or the US, or any other global player to help rebuild Afghanistan. To me it seems more like a soft power game to increase Russian prominence. But there's one aspect in which Russia could be particularly helpful to Afghanistan – its weapon sales for the needs of Afghan National Forces, because, after the US troops have withdrawn, we'll need to boost the capacity of both Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police, and it's impossible without supplying them with helicopters. Russia is one of the largest manufactures, and the US and Russia have recently concluded a deal of purchasing nearly 30 Russian Mi helicopters. So, maybe one of the topics will be shipments of Russian weaponry to Afghanistan.
Religious extremism, terrorism and drug trafficking in Afghanistan affect the entire region. How do you think President Medvedev will deal with it when talking to Hamid Karzai?
Obviously, the problem of Afghan narcotrafficking doesn't come from Afghanistan alone, but it also depends on the state of the southern Russian borders. He may raise this issue, but I don't think that it will be possible for Karzai to answer something practical. They may come back to the question of capacity building in Afghanistan, because it's Kabul, which should be in power to control the country, so that this drugs threat for Russia would be mitigated.
Let's talk about investment now. I understand China has become the biggest investor in Afghanistan. And obviously, when US troops pull out, other countries may try to come in to take advantage of its natural resources. For instance, there's a 3-billion-dollar contract to develop a copper mine that China has invested in. Do you think that Russia will be following behind to try to take advantage of the natural resources in Afghanistan?
I don't think so, because Russia is already a resource superpower. It has a lot of resources itself to invest into other countries' resources. And now, as you know, President Medvedev is launching a campaign to attract foreign investors to Russia, because we don't have sufficient capital to explore oil and gas fields in Siberia. So, I don't think that Russian companies will go to Afghanistan. What our companies can do is to participate in infrastructural projects, because we have around 100 infrastructural projects built by Soviet specialists in 1970-1980s, and Russian companies have preserved technical documentation for them. So, they made up about 50% of Afghanistan's GDP, and if the Afghanistan government wants to rebuild them, I suppose Russian companies could provide them with some financial and technical assistance.
Who will join SCO?
This is the only organization that brings together Russia, China and Central Asian nations. It was initiated just after the collapse of the Soviet Union to mitigate the challenges caused by border issues. But right now the organization aims at building real economic, military and political alliances in Central Asia, Russia and China. So, it will be a united block of countries with similar political regimes and economic interests. Many of them are members of the same military blocks, and there are some anti-terrorist structures inside the SCO as well.
For American audience – SCO members are China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, whereas the observer status is held by Iran, India, Mongolia and Pakistan. Right?
Right. And at the summit that we are awaiting there'll be a new charter, which will stipulate the accession of new members. There are two members in line – Iran and India. But one of the charter articles will see that nations under international sanctions – and that is Iran – will not be allowed to join the SCO. So, in the next year or several years – that depends on negotiations – we and China will see India join this club, which will change the whole dynamics in the organization, because now the two main powers are China and Russia. But, of course, you cannot compare their economic power – China has second largest GDP and Russia's is just eighth. So, we still have one major pool of influence and dominance in this organization, and the accession of India will make it more democratic. That's why Russia and President Medvedev will lobby India's joining the organization.
Obviously, India's membership won't be a problem. But do you think that using the SCO to encourage Iran to either change or drop its nuclear plans might make it easier for Iran to join the SCO?
I don't think so, because it doesn't seem that Iran would abandon its nuclear programme for membership of any organization, be it SCO or WTO. I don't think that it will be possible for Iran to join, because Tehran wants SCO membership just to have a shield, because SCO countries have obligations to defend one another. It's not like NATO's Article 5, but still. So, Tehran expects the SCO accession to help it deal with the western pressure. I don't think that Moscow and Beijing want to create more problems with Washington, or Brussels, or any European capital in regard to Iran.
Apparently, Russian President Medvedev is going to meet with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Afghanistan is obviously very important in this region. What do you think his talks with Karzai will entail? What do you think they will be talking about? Obviously, about the US troops' withdrawal, but what role will Russia play in what happens after American troops are gone?
Russia tried to make an impression that it would play a role in Afghanistan, but because of obvious reasons the topic of any Russian troops returning to Afghanistan is too sensitive for Russian audience, and I don't think that any Russian leadership would consider it. In terms of economic help, Russia hasn't got sufficient funds, as for example China, or India, or the US, or any other global player to help rebuild Afghanistan. To me it seems more like a soft power game to increase Russian prominence. But there's one aspect in which Russia could be particularly helpful to Afghanistan – its weapon sales for the needs of Afghan National Forces, because, after the US troops have withdrawn, we'll need to boost the capacity of both Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police, and it's impossible without supplying them with helicopters. Russia is one of the largest manufactures, and the US and Russia have recently concluded a deal of purchasing nearly 30 Russian Mi helicopters. So, maybe one of the topics will be shipments of Russian weaponry to Afghanistan.
Religious extremism, terrorism and drug trafficking in Afghanistan affect the entire region. How do you think President Medvedev will deal with it when talking to Hamid Karzai?
Obviously, the problem of Afghan narcotrafficking doesn't come from Afghanistan alone, but it also depends on the state of the southern Russian borders. He may raise this issue, but I don't think that it will be possible for Karzai to answer something practical. They may come back to the question of capacity building in Afghanistan, because it's Kabul, which should be in power to control the country, so that this drugs threat for Russia would be mitigated.
Let's talk about investment now. I understand China has become the biggest investor in Afghanistan. And obviously, when US troops pull out, other countries may try to come in to take advantage of its natural resources. For instance, there's a 3-billion-dollar contract to develop a copper mine that China has invested in. Do you think that Russia will be following behind to try to take advantage of the natural resources in Afghanistan?
I don't think so, because Russia is already a resource superpower. It has a lot of resources itself to invest into other countries' resources. And now, as you know, President Medvedev is launching a campaign to attract foreign investors to Russia, because we don't have sufficient capital to explore oil and gas fields in Siberia. So, I don't think that Russian companies will go to Afghanistan. What our companies can do is to participate in infrastructural projects, because we have around 100 infrastructural projects built by Soviet specialists in 1970-1980s, and Russian companies have preserved technical documentation for them. So, they made up about 50% of Afghanistan's GDP, and if the Afghanistan government wants to rebuild them, I suppose Russian companies could provide them with some financial and technical assistance.
LETHALFORCE
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It is written by Russians for the domestic audience who have not forgotten their defeat in Afghanistan thanks to Pakistan.
BRICs don't have to be a NATO-like organization to be useful -- all we have to do is coordinate on key issues to support multi-polarity against Western hegemony.
SAARC??? SAARC is a meeting place to bash India, thanks to Pakistan, which likes to organize the other members against "big, bad" India.
Even Bangladesh supports Maoists, Naxalites, and Northeastern guerrillas against us.
Nepal is now half-Maoist anyway, so they also support Maoists, Naxalites and Northeastern guerrillas against us.
Sri Lanka has decided to accept Chinese investment into building up its port facilities for transit of Chinese shipping.
They have received a lot of weapons from Beijing which helped them win the war against LTTE.
I don't see why a country has to only stick with its neighbors for alliance. After all, principles and values count more than skin colour.
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I did not say SAARC, I said South eats nations like Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia etc.,
Also what makes BRICS diffrent than SCO? Its the same China, Russia again and with no Brazil this time.
Looks like no full membership this year. And apparently India pushed the Afghans to apply for observer status as well.
SCO: Boost for anti-terror efforts with Afghanistan's likely entry
The counter-terrorism cooperation is set to deepen in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, with Afghanistan likely to be accepted as an "observer" in the group this year.
India is very keen that Afghanistan enters this multilateral grouping of six countries, which includes China and Russia, and is learnt to have encouraged Kabul to become a part of SCO. India itself is an observer, and is hoping to become a member next year.
Sources told The Indian Express that Afghan interlocutors had asked New Delhi if becoming an "observer" to the organisation would be beneficial for the country, and India had convinced them of the advantages of such a move.
For New Delhi, Afghanistan's inclusion will add more value to the growing security cooperation at SCO's premier counter-terror body in Tashkent -- Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS). China, sources said, benefited from the counter-terrorism cooperation at RATS when it hosted the Beijing Olympics, so did Russia when it hosted the Winter Olympics.
India, on its part, is keen to get inputs from RATS, whose chief it hosted last year and briefed him on the terrorist outfits operating on Pakistan's soil, and the Mumbai terror attacks.
India's perspective was spelt out by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on board the special flight to Astana to attend the summit. "We have always underscored our concerns about terror being unleashed against India, and we have always maintained that we would like to have our region terror-free. We would certainly expect cooperation from all countries," he said.
SCO: Boost for anti-terror efforts with Afghanistan's likely entry
The counter-terrorism cooperation is set to deepen in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, with Afghanistan likely to be accepted as an "observer" in the group this year.
India is very keen that Afghanistan enters this multilateral grouping of six countries, which includes China and Russia, and is learnt to have encouraged Kabul to become a part of SCO. India itself is an observer, and is hoping to become a member next year.
Sources told The Indian Express that Afghan interlocutors had asked New Delhi if becoming an "observer" to the organisation would be beneficial for the country, and India had convinced them of the advantages of such a move.
For New Delhi, Afghanistan's inclusion will add more value to the growing security cooperation at SCO's premier counter-terror body in Tashkent -- Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS). China, sources said, benefited from the counter-terrorism cooperation at RATS when it hosted the Beijing Olympics, so did Russia when it hosted the Winter Olympics.
India, on its part, is keen to get inputs from RATS, whose chief it hosted last year and briefed him on the terrorist outfits operating on Pakistan's soil, and the Mumbai terror attacks.
India's perspective was spelt out by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on board the special flight to Astana to attend the summit. "We have always underscored our concerns about terror being unleashed against India, and we have always maintained that we would like to have our region terror-free. We would certainly expect cooperation from all countries," he said.
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Sri lanka shud be merged wid india , i like the chinese idea of taking over smaller countries that have similar culture.... Well but our so called civilised society might not allow it
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China is gaining importance and therefore india shud wake up once and for all,.... Our connstitution is such a shit that only works for our babus.... Worst of all we dont even have a national language 
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Nice idea. Why not push it a little further, how about entering into a Mutual Defense agreement with China, or some sorth of a Confederation? That way China will completely ignore Pakistan.
Maybe you can also invite Russia, Cuba and Iran into the Confederation. The ultimate NATO counter-balance...
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If they want Pakistan in with us then we should ask for Vietnam or Taiwan in with them! That a fair deal?
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India in Touch With SCO for Membership: Govt
India in Touch With SCO for Membership: Govt
Most of you might not support this idea, but I believe a regional co-operation in a win-win basis is the need of the day, and with the fact of ever changing international diplomatic scenario this might prove an alternative North-South Transport Corridor, a reintroduction of the ancient trade route.
India in Touch With SCO for Membership: Govt
Most of you might not support this idea, but I believe a regional co-operation in a win-win basis is the need of the day, and with the fact of ever changing international diplomatic scenario this might prove an alternative North-South Transport Corridor, a reintroduction of the ancient trade route.
LETHALFORCE
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Pressure on India to join Shanghai club
Pressure on India to join Shanghai club - The Times of India
BEIJING: India has come under renewed pressure to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as it tries to create a free trade zone among member countries. India is an observer at the SCO, but has been reluctant to become a full member.
The proposal is already on the agenda of the SCO, and two of its full members - China and Russia - have begun initial discussions on it, sources said.
Chinese officials, in particular, are pushing for the proposal because the uncertain economic conditions in Europe and the US pose serious danger to its exports.
Pressure on India to join Shanghai club - The Times of India
BEIJING: India has come under renewed pressure to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as it tries to create a free trade zone among member countries. India is an observer at the SCO, but has been reluctant to become a full member.
The proposal is already on the agenda of the SCO, and two of its full members - China and Russia - have begun initial discussions on it, sources said.
Chinese officials, in particular, are pushing for the proposal because the uncertain economic conditions in Europe and the US pose serious danger to its exports.
