शंघाई सहयोग संगठन (SCO): यूरेशियाई एकीकरण, सुरक्षा घर्षण और प्रतिस्पर्धी व्यापार गलियारे

नई दिल्ली / अंतरराष्ट्रीय डेस्क — यूरेशिया के 60% भूभाग वाले एससीओ में आतंकवाद पर दोहरे मापदंड और चाबहार-INSTC बनाम चीनी बीआरआई गलियारे को लेकर आंतरिक मतभेद सतह पर आ गए हैं।

Dateline: Astana – Tashkent – Moscow – Beijing — The Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) operates as an arena of strategic contradictions. Now spanning an expansive Eurasian territory from Belarus to the Bay of Bengal, the SCO represents over 60% of the Eurasian landmass and nearly half of the global population. Yet, beneath its rhetoric of regional solidarity lies a complex network of bilateral suspicions and competing visions for Eurasian connectivity.

                     THE EURASIAN TRANSIT RIVALRY
                                  │
    ┌─────────────────────────────┴─────────────────────────────┐
    ▼                                                           ▼
[China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)]          [The International North-South Corridor (INSTC)]
• East-West rail and highway corridors            • North-South multimodal route (India-Iran-Russia)
• Direct extraction of Central Asian energy       • Key gateway: Chabahar Port (Iran)
• Centralized financing via Beijing's banks       • Alternative to Malacca; sanctions-resilient

The Security Dilemma: RATS and Counter-Terrorism Friction

The core friction within the SCO centers on its security pillar: the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) based in Tashkent. Despite formal declarations against terrorism, separatism, and extremism, member states remain deeply divided over operational execution:

• Counter-Terrorism Double Standards: India has consistently challenged members that provide diplomatic cover to internationally designated terrorist organizations or leverage proxy asymmetric warfare as state policy.
• Geopolitical Divisions: The inclusion of regional rivals within the same grouping complicates consensus on cross-border intelligence sharing and mutual counter-terrorism operations.

Competing Connectivity Corridors: BRI vs. INSTC

Connectivity presents an equally sharp geopolitical contest:

• The Belt and Road Model: China’s infrastructure development across Central Asia connects the region's mineral, uranium, and natural gas resources directly to its domestic manufacturing hubs, reinforcing Beijing's regional economic influence.
• The INSTC Alternative: In contrast, India, Russia, and Central Asian states have focused on the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), centered on the strategic Iranian port of Chabahar. This multi-modal ship-to-rail link provides South Asia with a direct trade route to Central Asian and European markets, bypassing Pakistan entirely.

Central Asian Multi-Vectorism

Furthermore, Central Asian states—wary of trading their historic security dependence on Moscow for economic dependence on Beijing—continue to pursue "multi-vector" foreign policies. They actively court strategic investment and diplomatic partnerships from India, the European Union, and the United States to preserve their strategic autonomy.

The SCO's long-term relevance will depend on whether it can move beyond its identity as an anti-Western diplomatic forum and build transparent, rules-based transit infrastructure while establishing genuine counter-terrorism standards.