Iran officially joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which includes China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The decision was made at the SCO Heads of State Summit in New Delhi, RIA Novosti reports .
The leaders of the SCO countries also signed a memorandum of commitment for Belarus to join the organization, TASS reports. The signing of this memorandum launches the procedure for the full-fledged accession of the republic to the SCO, the report says. Initially, Belarus was invited to the summit as an observer.
The SCO countries in a joint declaration stressed the need for a "peaceful settlement of differences between countries" through dialogue. The statement also said that unilateral economic sanctions are incompatible with international law and negatively affect relations.