Iran president likely to attend Shanghai group summit - ministry

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hopes to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) slated for June 15 in Shanghai, a spokesman for the country's foreign ministry said Tuesday.

TEHRAN, May 30 (RIA Novosti) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hopes to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) slated for June 15 in Shanghai, a spokesman for the country's foreign ministry said Tuesday.

"The Iranian president is planning to attend the SCO summit, if no emergency arises," Hamid-Reza Asefi said, adding that Tehran was seeking to strengthen cooperation with SCO member states.

The SCO, a regional cooperation and security organization, was founded in 2001. It has six permanent members - China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. India, Mongolia, Iran, and Pakistan are observers, though Pakistan is expected to apply for full membership.