Iran Invited to SCO Economic Summit Despite US Sanction Threats

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has traveled to Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. The attendance comes despite threats from the United States to impose sanctions on any nation maintaining economic cooperation with the Islamic Republic. Alongside Iran, leaders from China, Russia, India, and Pakistan are participating in the summit. Before departing Tehran, Pezeshkian described the summit as a symbol of diverse and independent voices on the international stage, asserting that Iran would respond firmly to any aggression. The SCO, which comprises ten non-Western nations, aims to act as a counterweight to Western influence in security and economic matters. Despite internal frictions between members, such as trade disputes between China and India or border tensions between India and Pakistan, analysts suggest that a shared resentment toward Western policies, particularly those of the United States, remains the primary factor holding the bloc together.