TASHKENT, June 11: A regional security organisation dominated by Russia and China agreed on Friday to open its doors to new members with the exception of Iran, recently slapped with sanctions over its nuclear programme.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) adopted the guidelines, seen as potentially allowing observer nations India and Pakistan to join, at its annual summit in the Uzbek capital Tashkent.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hailed the new guidelines as “laying the foundation for expanding the SCO framework.”

But Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the leader of another SCO observer nation, Iran, stayed away from the summit after fresh sanctions were approved against the Islamic republic by the UN Security Council this week.

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the newly adopted guidelines did not allow countries under UN sanctions to obtain membership.

“It is written very clearly that one of the criteria (for membership) is that it is necessary not to be under UN Security Council sanctions,” Mr Lavrov told reporters.

“If the Security Council has introduced sanctions, then that country cannot become a full member.”

Russia’s Kommersant newspaper reported that the provision was pushed through by Moscow and Beijing, which are unwilling to jeopardise their relations with the West because of Iran.

Analysts said approving the membership guidelines would not immediately bring in new SCO members since observer nations like India and Pakistan have testy ties and China has not yet signalled support for the group’s expansion.—AFP


DAWN:Saturday, 12 Jun, 2010