Turkey must meet certain criteria when joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), including not participating in associations directed against any SCO member state or the SCO as a whole, Bakhtiyor Khakimov, Russian Presidential Special Representative for SCO Affairs and Ambassador at Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a briefing on Tuesday.
Turkey joined the North Atlantic Alliance in 1952.
"The first step should be the submission of a formal application signed by the head of state to the head of the chairing state. Obviously, the first official step must follow for the application to come in for consideration. As for the criteria, the criteria include, among other things, non-participation in associations, blocs and actions against any of the SCO member states or the SCO as a whole," he said.
Khakimov added that Turkey has long interacted effectively with SCO member states in various platforms. "In its time, the Energy Club was established upon Russia's initiative, within the framework of which a high-level group functions, one of the meetings was held in Turkey at the initiative of the Turkish side. <...> Turkish representatives have always participated in events devoted to security issues in the region and, above all, the topic of ensuring security in the context of the situation in Afghanistan," he added.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
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Based on materials from TASS