Iran expects full support from other member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) at the upcoming SCO summit in Tianjin this autumn, said Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi in an exclusive interview with China Global Television Network on Wednesday.
Araghchi attended the Meeting of the SCO Foreign Ministers Council in Tianjin on Tuesday. He said joining the SCO has provided many Global South countries like Iran with a new way to cope with matters, which differs from that of Western countries. "As you said, Iran has joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as a full member. We attach great importance to SCO and value its effort to, as I said, find the proper place of countries of the south in the international arena. And at the same time, we see many other countries who wish to join this organization, which is good by itself. And we all have a real intention to go to these paths, and address security issues, economic issues, even cultural issues of the member states in a different way than the western countries usually address," he said.
Speaking of his expectations for the summit, Araghchi expressed his gratitude to the SCO secretariat and members who condemned the United States and Israel for their attacks on Iran, calling such attacks a violation of international law.
"I have to say that we are very grateful to the SCO secretariat and each and every member states who condemned the act of aggression by Israeli regime and the United States against the Islamic Republic of Iran, particularly against the nuclear facilities of Iran. As you know, attacking, the act of aggression is by itself, a violation of international law, against the Charter of the United Nations. But attacking nuclear facilities is even a bigger violation, an unforgivable violation of the international law. It is totally prohibited to attack a nuclear facility, which could have disastrous environmental consequences against human beings," he said.
"So, as I said, we are grateful for SCO member states who condemned that, particularly China, I think it had a very strong position in support and solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran to express their condolences for the people who lost their lives, women, and children included. So, we expect full support, a political support, by the SCO Summit, upcoming summit for the Islamic Republic of Iran," said the foreign minister.
In July 2023, Iran officially became the ninth member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Iranian FM on expectations for Tianjin SCO summit
