TEHRAN- Sadyr Japarov, the President of Kyrgyzstan, has praised the growing ties between Bishkek and Tehran.

Japarov made the remarks while receiving credentials of Gholamhossein Yadegari, Iran’s new ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, during a ceremony on Saturday.

The Kyrgyz president wished Ambassador Yadegari luck and emphasized that political conversations and bilateral cooperation in all spheres of interest will be increased.

He also congratulated Iran on its acceptance to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), stating that Iran’s full membership will enhance cooperation among member states.

Iran was officially admitted as a full SCO member on July 4. It was done during the organization’s 23rd summit in New Delhi.

Ambassador Yadegari, for his part, expressed gratitude to Kyrgyzstan for its support for Iran’s full membership in the organization and stressed Tehran’s willingness to develop relations with Bishkek.

The process of Iran moving from an observer status to a main member started in September 2021 when Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi appeared at the 21st meeting of the heads of the organization in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan.

At the end of that meeting, the heads of the eight main member countries announced their approval of changing the status of Iran to a main member and signed the relevant documents. Accordingly, the technical process of Iran’s membership in the SCO kicked off.

Iran met all the requirements for the membership and fulfilled the procedural obligations in this regard. Ultimately, the Iranian parliament passed the “law of the accession of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.”

Iran becoming a full member comes a time when the world order is undergoing a major change in which the West is no longer dominant. This new order is marked by the rise of Asian superpowers and regional powers.

With the SCO membership, Iran made a stride in terms of cementing its position in the emerging world order.