After SCO statement on Iran-Israel tensions, India says no change in its position
The Hindu
India maintains stance on Israel-Iran conflict, urges dialogue for de-escalation, as SCO criticizes Israel's military strikes.
India on Saturday (June 14, 2025) asserted that its position on the Israel-Iran situation remains as stated earlier and urged the international community to utilise channels of dialogue and diplomacy towards de-escalation, after the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) issued a statement critical of Israel's military strikes.
India had on Friday said it was "deeply concerned" at the recent developments between Iran and Israel and "closely monitoring" the evolving situation, even as New Delhi had urged both countries to avoid any escalatory steps.
The statement by SCO dated June 14 said, "The member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) express serious concern over the escalating tensions in the Middle East and strongly condemn the military strikes carried out by Israel on the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran on June 13." China currently holds the chairmanship of the SCO. The influential economic and security bloc's members include Russia, India and Pakistan.
The SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation established in 2001 in Shanghai in China by Kazakhstan, China, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
The SCO statement on the Israel-Iran situation claimed, "Such aggressive actions (by Israel) against civilian targets, including energy and transport infrastructure, which have resulted in civilian casualties, are a gross violation of international law and the United Nations Charter." They constitute an "infringement on Iran's sovereignty", cause damage to regional and international security, and pose "serious risks to global peace and stability," it argued.
"The SCO member states firmly advocate for the resolution of the situation surrounding Iran's nuclear program exclusively through peaceful, political, and diplomatic means," the SCO statement said.
India's association with the SCO began in 2005 as an observer country. It became a full member state of SCO at the Astana summit in 2017.
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