India blocks Azerbaijan’s SCO bid again

PanARMENIAN.Net - India has once again vetoed Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Sources suggest New Delhi’s decision is linked to Azerbaijan’s close relations with Pakistan, Sputnik Armenia reported, citing AnewZ.

At the same time, China reaffirmed its support for Baku’s application.

While in China, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held a bilateral meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, where he congratulated Pakistan on what he called a “victory over India,” Minval.az reported.

Aliyev also stated that India was “trying to take revenge on Azerbaijan in international platforms in response to Baku’s allied relations with Islamabad.”

On September 1, at the SCO summit in Tianjin, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared that China supports full membership for both Armenia and Azerbaijan, which currently hold the status of SCO dialogue partners.