SCO Summit in Tianjin Challenges U.S. Influence, but Its Reach Remains Unclear

Tianjin, China, August 31, 2025 – The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, held in Tianjin from August 31 to September 1, brings together leaders from 10 member states, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, in what is seen as a potential counterweight to U.S. influence on trade and regional conflicts. The SCO, comprising Russia, Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, has grown over its 24-year history, yet its goals and global impact remain ambiguous, with some calling it “the scariest grouping you have never heard of.”

Founded in 2001 primarily as a China-dominated security bloc to counter U.S. influence in Central Asia, the SCO has expanded with India and Pakistan joining in 2017, Iran in 2023, and Belarus in 2024. While China and Russia lead the group, their influence is complicated by members like India, which maintains a policy of neutrality but has strained relations with the U.S. due to its increased purchase of Russian oil amid the Russia-Ukraine war. India’s participation may challenge the dominance of China and Russia within the SCO, though it is unlikely to support Russia’s actions in Ukraine or China’s claims over Taiwan and the South China Sea India has signaled it will not sign a joint SCO statement, citing a pro-Pakistan bias in the omission of a mention of the April 22, 2025, terror attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Meanwhile, China’s Xinhua News Agency described the summit as the “largest-ever” in SCO history, aimed at shaping the bloc’s development over the next decade. The summit will see participation from leaders of dialogue partners like Egypt and Nepal, with documents to be signed, including one marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. Experts note the SCO’s shift from a dialogue platform to a mechanism for practical cooperation, though its effectiveness in addressing global challenges remains questionable. “For China’s leadership, there is a lot of emphasis on maintaining existing relations in the international arena, even though the SCO has not been effective in dealing with the major challenges of today,” said Dali Yang, a political scientist at the University of Chicago. June Teufel Dreyer, a University of Miami expert, added that the summit could bolster Xi Jinping’s image as a leader of a new global order, though the SCO’s ultimate goals remain unclear.