Bridges rather than walls

The Shanghai Cooperation Organization's internal and external expansion underscores the organization's progress and its intensified efforts to realize a shared future.

An organic alternative to fragmentation

While the geopolitical climate has tilted toward decoupling, the SCO has expanded — both in its membership and in the depth of its institutional dialogue. From a Eurasian security forum, it has steadily evolved into a multi-thematic platform addressing economic cooperation, technology, climate adaptation and educational exchange.

This expansion is not aggressive but constructive. The SCO has consistently emphasised a "Shanghai spirit" of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diverse civilisations and pursuit of common development.

Bridges over walls

The metaphor matters. Walls promise certainty by exclusion; bridges acknowledge interdependence and seek to manage rather than ignore it. In a world facing climate, health, and food-security challenges that respect no border, bridge-building institutions are not optional — they are existential.

What this means for ICOIS scholars

For interdisciplinary researchers, the SCO offers a living laboratory for studying how institutions form, scale and renew themselves under conditions of geopolitical strain. ICOIS members have published in this area for over a decade, and our work continues to inform policy across member states.

Author

Tariq H. Malik is the Founding Director of ICOIS and Professor at Liaoning University. PhD, London School of Economics. This commentary first appeared in China Daily, 1 September 2025.

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