Ascension Procedure for India, Pakistan into SCO New Stage of Development

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that it's for the first time since the founding of Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the procedure of accepting the new members of India and Pakistan has been launched.

UFA (Sputnik) – The Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s summit in Ufa has opened a new level for developing the organization by launching the procedures for the ascension of new members into the organization, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday.

“Today’s summit opens a new level in the SCO’s development. For the first time since the founding of the organization, the procedure of accepting the new members of India and Pakistan has been launched,” Putin said.

New Delhi and Islamabad entered an ascension process into the political, economic and security alliance with documentation signed earlier in the southwestern Russian host city. The two SCO observer states lodged their admission applications in September 2014.

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif characterized the proposed accession to SCO as a turning point in the organization’s history. Pakistan and India, in possession of nuclear weapons, are not signatories to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

Uzbek President Islam Karimov, speaking at the summit earlier, suggested the latest development may change the world’s political map and tip the balance of power.