China says it is in “close communication” with India and Pakistan to ease tensions

China says it is in “close communication” with India and Pakistan to ease tensions

1. China has said that it is planning to send a special envoy to ease tensions between India and Pakistan after the Pulwama attack.
2. China agreed with Russia which said that Counter terrorism Mechanism such as Regional Anti terrorist Structure(RATS) under Shanghai cooperation Organisation(SCO) could be used as a forum to discuss India-Pakistan issues.However,India maintains that Kashmir is a bilateral issue and there is no need for any third party mediation.
3. The Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS),headquartered in Tashkent, Uzbekistan,is a permanent organ of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO).It serves to promote cooperation of member states against (a)terrorism (b)separatism and (c)extremism.The head of RATS is elected to a three-year term.Each member state also sends a permanent representative to RATS.
4. The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation,also known as the Shanghai Pact,is a Eurasian political,economic,and military organisation.It was founded in 2001 by the leaders of China,Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,Russia,Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
5. Apart from Uzbekistan,the other five countries have been a part of the Shanghai 5 since 1996.The cooperation was renamed to Shanghai Cooperation Organisation after Uzbekistan joined the organisation in 2001.India and Pakistan joined SCO as full members in 2017.
6. The SCO’s main goals are:(a)strengthening mutual trust and neighbourliness among the member states (b)promoting their effective cooperation in politics, trade, the economy, research, technology and culture, as well as in education, energy, transport, tourism, environmental protection, and other areas (c)making joint efforts to maintain and ensure peace, security and stability in the region; and (d)moving towards the establishment of a democratic, fair and rational new international political and economic order.