The SCO is an intergovernmental mutual-security organization which was founded in 2001 by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Iran currently has observer status in the organization, and applied for full membership on March 24, 2008.

In a meeting with SCO Secretary General Bolat Nurgaliyev, Davoudi said Iran intends to increase its relations with the organization in different areas, Tehran Times reported.

Referring to the positive cooperation between the SCO country members, he said Iran’s relations with the SCO will help promote peace and stability in the region.

He added that the SCO members can resolve regional and international issues through cooperation with other regional states.

Davoudi went on to say that Tehran favors economic, banking, transportation, and energy cooperation between the SCO and other regional countries.

Nurgaliyev, for his part, expressed satisfaction at Iran’s close interaction with the SCO and hoped that relations would improve between Tehran and the Eurasian union.

Pointing to common interests, he said Iran’s cooperation with SCO is in line with establishing peace and stability in the region.

The SCO member states cover an area of over 30 million km2, or about three fifths of Eurasia, with a population of 1.455 billion, about a quarter of the world’s total. Its working languages are Chinese and Russian.