Mongolia To Make Final Decision On SCO Membership After Delegation's Visit To HQ- Minister

Fakhir Rizvi Published October 17, 2018 | 08:35 PM

Mongolia will make a final decision whether to upgrade its observer status with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to a full-fledged member after its delegation visits the SCO headquarters, Mongolian Foreign Minister Damdin Tsogtbaatar told Sputnik on Wednesday.

SOCHI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th October, 2018) Mongolia will make a final decision whether to upgrade its observer status with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to a full-fledged member after its delegation visits the SCO headquarters, Mongolian Foreign Minister Damdin Tsogtbaatar told Sputnik on Wednesday.

Back in May, Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga suggested that his country should upgrade its status with the organization and become a full-fledged member. According to the president, it would have a positive effect on the national economy and open new opportunities for the implementation of large-scale projects. Such SCO nations as Russia and China have repeatedly voiced their readiness to welcome Mongolia as a new member.

"We are also planning to send a delegation of experts to the SCO headquarters so that they could have first-hand experience in interacting with the SCO and learn more about the SCO on the ground. On the basis of this research and these open discussions we will be making our final decision," Tsogtbaatar said on the sidelines of the annual meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in the Russian resort city of Sochi.

Tsogtbaatar noted that Mongolia was considering the issue very thoroughly and openly, engaging non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the expert community in the discussion.

"Now we have opened the floor and we are openly discussing the issue of upgrading our participation and status in the SCO. Now we are openly engaging our NGOs and scholar community to come up with their views and ideas, and we are really trying to study the issue very thoroughly," Tsogtbaatar stressed.

The minister added that there was no fixed time frame for Mongolia to upgrade its status with the organization.

SCO, established in 2001, comprises China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as permanent members, while Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran and Mongolia hold observer status. The SCO states cooperate on a number of issues, including economy, security, culture and science.