Thursday, June 15 2006 10:47 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Shanghai: The fifth summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), a regional grouping in which India has an observer status, opened here today with member nations set to agree on key areas, including counter-terrorism, trade and economic cooperation.

Chinese President Hu Jintao, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov and Uzbek President Islam Karimov are attending the summit.

Founded in Shanghai on June 15, 2001, the SCO comprises China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It has four observer nations- India, Iran, Mongolia and Pakistan.

India is represented at the SCO summit by Petroleum Minister Murli Deora.

"India looks forward to associating closely with SCO members" on a variety of initiatives to promote economic cooperation.

He expressed hope that the organisation would soon announce its policies on the opportunities for observer-countries to have meaningful and substantive collaboration within the SCO framework," Deora said on arrival in the eastern Chinese metropolis.

The summit is also being attended by the presidents of Mongolia, Pakistan and Iran.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai will also attend the SCO summit as a guest of the host country.