Disappointment in Tashkent: Iran and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization

... materialized. China had previously announced its support for Iran’s membership when President Xi Jinping visited the county in January, but in the run up to the summit this support evaporated. Beijing reportedly wanted to focus on the accession of Pakistan and India before turning to Iran. Other SCO countries did not even acknowledge discussing Iranian membership in their official statements. A summary of the summit’s proceedings released by the office of Uzbekistan’s president merely mentions that Foreign Minister Zarif was in attendance....