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Fatima Latifova

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Azerbaijan has applied to change its status from a dialogue partner to an observer country in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Azernews reports, citing Iran's national coordinator in the SCO Secretariat, Mehrdad Kiayei, as he told to the newspaper "Izvestia."

"Several countries, including Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Armenia, Bangladesh, Azerbaijan, and others, have applied to join the organization. These countries (except for Bangladesh) want to change their status from dialogue partners to observer status. In principle, we are ready to consider this issue and reach a certain conclusion in agreement with the respective applicants and member states of the organization," he said.

Note that Azerbaijan places significant emphasis on fostering relations with Central Asian countries, particularly its engagements with the Turkic states in the region. In recent years, there has been a steady exchange of visits between President Ilham Aliyev and leaders from Central Asian nations.

President Ilham Aliyev's participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on July 3-4 underscores Azerbaijan's growing international influence. This marked his fourth visit to Kazakhstan in the last two years and highlights Azerbaijan's deepening ties with SCO.

Cooperation in the East-West and North-South transport corridors represents a pivotal area of collaboration between Azerbaijan and SCO member states. Positioned strategically, Azerbaijan's substantial investments in transportation infrastructure hold the potential to position the country as a pivotal transportation and logistics hub in Eurasia.

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