TEHRAN – A legislator has said that Iran’s official membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was the result of the administration of Ebrahim Raisi's clever diplomacy.

Speaking to IRNA on Friday, Mostafa Nakhaei stated that the SCO was founded with the goal of preventing U.S. and NATO intrusion into Asia. The SCO member states have frequently emphasized the necessity to close U.S. military installations in the region.

The Iranian lawmaker emphasized that the Raisi administration's extremely deft and astute diplomacy has paved the path for Iran's application to join the SCO.

The SCO is regarded a very large pole in the globe that can invest in the Iranian market and assist develop employment chances for the Iranians, he continued.

The Islamic Republic was able to have talks and continue its active diplomacy during the hard-sanction period in order to strengthen its cooperation with partner countries, particularly in commerce and trade, as seen by Iran's full participation in the SCO.

He pointed out that as the SCO members are the world's largest producers and consumers of energy, Iran would have a unique chance as a result of membership.

The SCO nations, according to Nakhaei, can undertake financial transactions and commercial exchanges using a single currency in order to safeguard their collective economic interests and lift Western sanctions against them.

The legislator argues that the Iranian public and private sectors may benefit from the chance to compete on regional and global markets, and that the administration should assist the private sector in doing so.
In order to prepare the foundation for the private sector's entry into key markets, he also asked the government to form a team of professionals to support it.

He emphasized that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs plays a crucial role in achieving this goal and encouraged the ministry’s economic division to work with other Iranian ministries to make sure the private sector has the chance to participate in global markets.

The 22nd summit of the SCO, held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, approved the Islamic Republic of Iran as an official member. However, it won't officially become a full member until April 2023.

The SCO is a Eurasian political, economic and security organization. In terms of geographic scope and population, it is the world's largest regional organization, covering approximately 60% of the area of Eurasia, 40% of the world population, and more than 30% of global GDP.