A Potential Rival For NATO
A Potential Rival For NATO
Quote:
'Shanghai 5' Group Evolves Into Power 'OPEC With Bombs'
After a decade as a largely unknown body bringing together Russia, China and a number of Central Asian states, the Shanghai Co-operation Organization is evolving into a security and political bloc that could become a key global player with the clout to challenge NATO, experts say.
Russian and Chinese leaders praised the organization this week as parliamentary leaders from its six member states met in Moscow ahead of a major SCO summit on June 15 in Shanghai. Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan founded the group as the "Shanghai Five" in 1996 and it was expanded to include Uzbekistan, renamed the SCO and given a written charter in 2001.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told the lawmakers the Kremlin is working to strengthen the organization's role and clout.
"It's in our interest that the SCO develops as an efficient guarantor of stability and security on the vast Eurasian space," Putin told the parliamentarians, who were discussing ways to establish a legislative dimension for the SCO.
Putin also cited efforts to counter the group's growing influence.
"We see in the international arena that there are attempts to create competition to our organization," he said. "I think it would be right if we did not engage in this and instead continued with the positive, constructive work that we have been doing for the past several years."
Putin did not elaborate, but experts said his comments were clearly directed at the United States, which is fighting for influence in Central Asia with Russia and China.
The organization's members insist its main goal is to foster co-operation by working to resolve cross-border disputes, promote economic links and support joint efforts to combat regional problems such as drug trafficking. At the same time, however, the SCO has increasingly formed the basis for military co-operation between its member states. Last year, more than 10,000 troops from SCO member countries participated in the group's first joint military exercises and another set of war games are planned for next year.
"They say they don't want to form a NATO of the east, but the question remains: Why conduct these military exercises under the auspices of the SCO if it's not meant as a counterbalance to NATO?" said David Wall, a professor at the Cambridge University's East Asia Institute.
"The Shanghai organization is trying to transform itself into a real political-security structure that can act as an alternative to current international organizations," said Yevgeny Volk, director of the Moscow office of the conservative Heritage Foundation.
Experts said Russia's interest in the SCO has been growing as its relations with Western countries have deteriorated amid increasing criticism of the Kremlin's record on democracy and aggressive foreign policies.
The organization's growing influence became clear at its 2005 summit meeting in the Kazakh capital Astana, when it called on the United States to remove its troops from central Asia. Uzbekistan promptly ordered the closure of a U.S. base on its soil, though another base still operates in Kyrgyzstan.
In the run-up to the June summit, SCO members have laid out ambitious plans to increase the group's political role and to consider expanding its membership to more countries, including Iran. Russia and China have blocked efforts to impose sanctions on Iran for its nuclear program and Tehran has said it would welcome membership in the SCO. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is expected to attend the June summit.
The expansion of the organization into Iran and other countries could make it "an enormous power," Wall said.
"An expanded SCO would control a large part of the world's oil and gas reserves and nuclear arsenal. It would essentially be an OPEC with bombs."
