India in the SCO

From the January 2022 summit to the recent NSA meeting, India has ramped up its outreach to Central Asia this year.

Across the SCO there is conflict at various levels that complicates India's engagement, from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to simmering Sino-Indian tensions.

The SCO Summit went virtual this year amid the pandemic, but the content of the meeting was the same as always: big talk, little action.

As Sino-India relations enter free-fall, New Delhi finds itself at the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

Any benefits from the SCO are cancelled out by the presence of China and Pakistan.

At the next SCO summit in June, the matter of calming tensions between its newest member states, India and Pakistan, is paramount.

The SCO is not a platform for harmony or discord per se, rather it is what the members make of it.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization recently added India and Pakistan. Could Iran be next?

With multilateral counterterrorism exercises, the SCO may help bridge the gap between Islamabad and New Delhi.

India’s involvement in the SCO brings a diplomatic challenge and opportunities in energy, connectivity, and security.

Given current tensions between China and India, New Delhi's inclusion will cause headaches for Beijing.