Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation traces its origins to the 26th of April 1996 when China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed a treaty in Shanghai. This document established the Shanghai Five group to reduce military tensions along shared frontiers.
Nurlan Yermekbayev of Kazakhstan became secretary-general on the 1st of January 2025 following a three-year term cycle. The permanent Secretariat based in Beijing serves as the primary executive body for the organization.
Chinese and Russian serve as the official languages of the organization. These two languages facilitate communication among all member states during annual summits and Council meetings.
India and Pakistan officially joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation as full members during a summit held in Kazakhstan in June 2017. Both nations had signed memoranda of obligations in Tashkent the previous year starting their accession process.
Iran became the eighth member state after joining in July 2023. This expansion followed the admission of Belarus as the ninth member in July 2024.