Introduction
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, five independent states have emerged in Central Asia; Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, with insufficient statehood experience, with lack of national ideology and with weak security institutions those states posed a security threat to the regional stability. The shared interests of China and Russia encouraged both parties to create a platform in order to jointly tackle the security issues in this part of the world, they had in their mind that this platform also would permit them to counter US influence in the region, as well as, they would also use this organization to check and balance each other ensuring that neither side gains the upper hand in Central Asia2. From the security perspective, Shanghai Cooperation Organization aimed at fighting against “three evils”; separatism, extremism and terrorism, as well as drug trafficking3. Regular military exercises organized in the framework of SCO, a formation of regional terrorism center, as well as the resolution of border disputes among the regional countries stipulate that the organization has managed to the great extent to fulfil its objectives and contributed to preserve the security in Central Asia
Theory
In this research paper I am going to examine the impact of SCO in ensuring security in Central Asia region. Analyzing Barry Buzan and Ola Weaver's regional security complex theory5 enables us to understand the security challenges of the Central Asian states, and it assists us in answering our research question whether Shanghai Cooperation Organization has contributed in preserving security in Central Asia.
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Shanghai Cooperation Organization was formed in 2001 by Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, however the foundations of the organization laid 5 years prior to that in 1996 following the creation of so-called “Shanghai five” initiative by Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, “Shanghai five” targeted to solve border issues between member states, as well as to build confidence among them, for instance it controlled the weapons and military equipment in military bases of the member states within the 100km of the border, each year inspections were conducted to make sure countries are respecting their obligations6 . With the formation of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, this initiative has broadened its scope and became focused on security, political, environmental and cultural spheres. With that being said security remained an essential focus of the organization, SCO aimed at fighting against the threat of extremism, terrorism, separatism and drug trafficking it even formed the Regional Terrorism Centre, with Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan as the headquarter, intelligence sharing and gathering is the key component of this center. Under the framework of the SCO regular war games are organized, through these activities countries strengthen their military cooperation and test their combat readiness and capabilities
SCO considered the presence of western military bases as a threat and in 2005 SCO issued a warning to the US asking it to provide a timeline when it is going to withdraw its troops from Uzbekistan, up to that point the US was using Karshi-Khanabad airbase of Uzbekistan, to provide logistical support for its operations in neighboring Afghanistan9 . In 2017 SCO went for further enlargement two rival countries India and Pakistan joined the organization, currently, it has eight members10. Belarus, Afghanistan, Iran and Mongolia hold observer statuses in this organization and Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Turkey are dialogue partners of the SCO11. Iran has expressed its willingness to join the organization many times, notwithstanding due to western sanctions this hasn’t been materialized yet12. Maintaining peace and stability in the region remains a crucial task for the SCO.
Central Asia
Newly independent Central Asian countries have faced several challenges in the first years of their independence, and most significant of them was extremism and terrorism. The intervention of the USA in Afghanistan created an extra task for the Central Asian republics, as some Central Asian extremists joined jihadist movements in Afghanistan to fight against the
US.