Armenia to receive partner status in dialogue with SCO

Armenia will receive a dialogue partner status in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). A memorandum on it will be signed during the upcoming visit of Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian to Beijing, according to the ministry’s press office.

Nalbandian and SCO Secretary General Rashid Alimov will sign the document. While on a visit to China on April 15-16, the Armenian foreign minister will meet with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi to discuss the prospects of the bilateral cooperation.

China is now considered as one of the potential investors in the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway.

As for the cooperation within SCO, Armenian economists say the dialogue partner status will give Yerevan direct access to the processes inside the Organization. Armenia will have an opportunity to participate in all the discussions (without the right to vote or a possibility to influence the policy of the Organization – editor’s note) and familiarize itself with the processes inside the SCO.

This will enable Armenia establish a direct contact with the other members of the Organization and present the national products and services.