ABSTRACT
Conceived as a regional security group, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was officially established in June 2001 by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The organization evolved out of the Shanghai Five, which was founded in 1996 and included the same countries with the exception of Uzbekistan. Parallel to China’s growing role in Central Asia, the SCO has expanded beyond a security organization to become a forum for economic cooperation in the region.
