SCO summit held

• India chaired the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Heads of State Council Meeting virtual Summit recently.
• The theme of India’s chairpersonship of SCO is ‘Towards a SECURE SCO’.
  • SECURE stands for S: Security, E: Economic development, C: Connectivity, U: Unity, R: Respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, E: Environmental protection.

Major highlights

• Iran officially joined the SCO as the 9^th Member Country.
• New Delhi Declaration was signed by member nations to counter activities of terrorist, separatist and extremist groups, preventing spread of religious intolerance, aggressive nationalism, ethnic and racial discrimination, xenophobia
• India refused to be part of the BRI (Belt and Road Initiative) of the SCO members’ economic strategy statement, mentioning “interested member states’.
• Members agreed to declare 2024 as the SCO Year of Environment.
• Statement on Cooperation in Digital Transformation to unlock full potential of digitalization across all sectors of the economy.
• India has created five new pillars and focus area for cooperation in the SCO, which include,
  • Startups and Innovation
  • Traditional Medicine
  • Youth Empowerment
  • Digital Inclusion
  • Shared Buddhist Heritage
• Earlier, Varanasi was declared first tourism and cultural capital of SCO.