India, Pakistan to join Russia, China-led group
Saturday, 11 July 2015
President Vladimir Putin announced on Friday that India and Pakistan will join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a group dominated by Russia and China, and also including former Soviet republics in Central Asia. Russia sees the organisation, expanding for the first time since its creation in 2001, as a counterweight to the Western alliances. Membership in the group potentially offers India greater access to the energy resources of Central Asia. — AP