prospect of india membership in the shanghai cooperation organization: opportunities and challenges

regional organizations are established to achieve to strategic interests of the member countries based on common interests and goals. shanghai cooperation organization (sco) is considered as a regional organization. sco was formed in 2001 with the participation of china, russia, kazakhstan, kyrgyzstan, tajikistan and uzbekistan. this study attempts to analyze the reasons of india for trying to consider itself as an ideal candidate for sco membership, while the member countries stipulated that they can admit no plans to accept new members in the near future. nevertheless, india should continue to pursue its case for membership, as it will benefit both india and the sco members. in order to understand and analyze this condition, the research discusses the origin and growth of sco and its emergence as a regional international organization. it identifies the potential benefits that india can gain by becoming the full member of sco. the research has indicated that the present concerns and challenges that india would have to confront after obtaining the full membership.