India is now a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation , which is known to be a China backed bloc for military and energy cooperation . It held observer status from 2005 and publicly expressed its wish for a full membership.India and Pakistan joined SCO as full members on 9 June 2017 in Astana , Kazakhstan . Although Russia had all along backed India 's entry it was Beijing 's reservation which held it so long . However Chinese president Xi Jinping informed Modi during BRICS summit in Brazil that it is ready to welcome India together with Pakistan in order to project a united front against Islamic extremism in Central Asia including Afghanistan specially after NATO withdrawal . On 11 – 12 September EAM Sushma Swaraj attended the Dushanbe summit in Tajikistan where India formally put its paper for a full membership and it became likely that it would be granted so according to Chinese officials . Modi participated at the heads of government summit in Astana , Kazakhstan in December
Dushanbe summit
2014 SCO summit
Foreign policy of the Narendra Modi government