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Iran's accession to BRICS, SCO marks important achievement of government — lawmaker

Mahmoud Abbaszadeh Meshkini noted that the current president has prioritized the development of relations with neighboring countries

DUBAI, March 18. /TASS/. Iran's accession to both the BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) marks an important achievement of the Islamic Republic’s current government under President Ebrahim Raisi, Iranian Majlis (parliament) National Security and Foreign Policy Committee member Mahmoud Abbaszadeh Meshkini said.

"Joining the BRICS and SCO and [gaining] a central role in some international organizations are among the important achievements of the government of [Ebrahim] Raisi over the past two years," he said in an interview with the IRNA news agency. The lawmaker also noted that the current president has prioritized the development of relations with neighboring countries, having made significant efforts in this direction.

Iran became a full member of the BRICS on January 1, 2024, after Tehran had submitted its membership application in June 2022.

On July 4, 2023, at the 23rd meeting of the Council of Heads of SCO Member States, Iran became the ninth full member of the organization. Tehran applied to join the SCO in 2008, in September 2021 the procedure for admitting the country to the intergovernmental organization was formally launched, and in 2022 a memorandum on the obligations of the Iranian side in connection with joining the association was signed.

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