Why nations are suddenly locked in an arms race unseen since the early days of the Cold War
But the exercise highlighted an alarming new reality. With much less fanfare than the early days of the Cold War, the world is entering a new arms race, and with it, a dangerous new web of military relationships. [...]

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The United States said Tuesday a Central Asian bloc dominated by Russia and China was unlikely to turn into a military alliance, but expressed concern over Iran’s potential membership.
The six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which comprises Russia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and China, seemed to have returned to its original goals of mostly improving border [...]

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Iran has lodged a bid to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) that comprises Russia, China and the four ex-Soviet Central Asian states, the country’s foreign minister said on Monday.
The Islamic Republic, which currently holds an observer status in the regional security group, has long sought to become a full member of the SCO, [...]

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WASHINGTON, DC (10/19/07)–The Jamestown Foundation has released a new Occasional Paper entitled “The Rising Dragon: SCO Peace Mission 2007.” The paper is authored by Roger N. McDermott, Senior Fellow in Eurasian Military Studies at The Jamestown Foundation in Washington, D.C. and an Honorary Senior Fellow in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the [...]

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SCO: Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Led by China
CST: Collective Security Treaty. Led by Russia
* New alliance seeks cooperation not confrontation with the West
DUSHANBE: A Russia-led defence alliance signed an agreement on Friday to link up with a China-headed security body, but both sides denied they were challenging the Western alliance, NATO.
The agreement, signed in the Tajik [...]

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LONDON,Sept 27 (APP): The six-member Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) could be enlarged in near future to include Pakistan,India,Iran and Mongolia to help strengthen regional security and ensure greater economic development and progress.
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The State Department does not understand why China continues to exclude the United States from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a State Department official said last week, despite intelligence indicating that the SCO is being used by Beijing to drive the United States out of Central Asia.
Evan Feigenbaum, deputy assistant secretary of state for south and [...]

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Evan A. Feigenbaum, Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs
The Nixon Center
Washington, DC
September 6, 2007
As Prepared
Well, Drew, thanks so much for inviting me. And thanks everyone for coming out today for what I’m sure is going to be a very provocative conversation.
Now, the Nixon Center is a tough taskmaster because my assigned subject [...]

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Where does the SCO fit in the “new cold war?” The question can take different forms. A variant would be, “Is the SCO turning into a NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization]-like military alliance?” The core issue is the extent to which Russia and China would have common concerns and shared interests in the period ahead [...]

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Most international headlines focused on the thinly veiled swipes at Washington taken by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad and Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We are convinced that … any attempts to resolve global and regional problems alone are useless,” Putin said. Meanwhile, Ahmedinejad, who was in Bishkek as an observer, derided the “threats of one of [...]

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Russia and China have continued to build momentum. They are in the process of solidifying closer military and security cooperation under the auspices of the SCO. Russian interest in finding new security arrangements has been accelerated by U.S. determination to install missile defense systems in Poland and the Czech Republic. This could spur Russia and [...]

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In July 2007, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (S.C.O.) — consisting of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan — founded a so-called “Energy Club” to coordinate energy strategies. On August 16, the heads of state will hold their annual summit, this time in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. After the summit, they will travel to Chebarkul, a city [...]

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Still, it is not clear why the SCO’s founding document needs to be revised and which new members will be added to it and why.
These aforementioned points illustrate the dilemma facing observers of the SCO. On the one hand its members, particularly Russia and China, call it a significant new departure in world politics and [...]

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The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is holding joint military exercises this week in Russia, with all six member nations participating for the first time. However, judging from the number of soldiers taking part, the significance of the maneuvers is more symbolic than practical. Less than 4,000 troops are involved in the drills dubbed Peace Mission 2007: [...]

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President Hu Jintao will begin a three-nation tour to Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Russia August 14-18, to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit (SCO) and observe the SCO joint anti-terrorism military drill in Russia, the Foreign Ministry said yesterday.
The seventh SCO summit will be held in Bishkek, capital of Kyrgyzstan on August 16. Heads of states [...]

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It may seem improbable that a regional cooperation organization commences its annual summit against the backdrop of military exercises. The European Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the African Union, the Organization of Latin American States - none of them has ever done that.
Therefore, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is indeed making a very big [...]

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Last week Russian President Vladimir Putin, while meeting activists and leaders of pro-Kremlin youth movements, used rather bizarre language to describe Russia’s standoff with Great Britain over the murder of former spy Alexander Litvinenko in London last November. According to the official Kremlin website, Putin dismissed British calls to extradite Andrei Lugovoi, the man [...]

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AS China and Russia seek to cement their strategic partnership and create a “multipolar” world in which the United States will find it much more difficult to dominate international affairs, it is tempting to see the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as an expanding bulwark against Western influence in Eurasia.
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A massive joint military exercise involving Russia and the other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is about to start in the Chelyabinsk region in the Urals. The organization consists of six central Asian countries, which co-operate on security matters.
The manoeuvres called Peace Mission 2007 will involve more than 6,000 troops.
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Russia and China have taken part in joint military exercises in the eastern province of Inner Mongolia.
6,500 troops from Russia and 1,600 from China participated in the counter-terrorism exercises, which included airborne and logistic units.
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China and Russia are seeking to cement their strategic partnership and create a multi-polar world in which the United States will find it much more difficult to dominate international affairs.
It is tempting to see the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation as an expanding bulwark against Western influence in Eurasia.
Founded in Shanghai in 2001, the regional group has [...]

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