The document was signed by the SCO Secretary General Rashid Alimov and Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian in Beijing, China, on 16 April 2016.

The memorandum entered into force from the date of signing. It is worth to mention that within the presidency of Uzbekistan in the SCO, Cambodia, Azerbaijan and Nepal became the SCO dialogue partner.

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization was founded in 2001 and includes six countries, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirgizstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Afghanistan, Belarus, India, Iran and Mongolia and Pakistan are observer states, while Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey and Sri Lanka are the SCO dialogue partners.