Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, February 1 (RIA Novosti) - Kyrgyz Finance Minister Tazhikan Kalimbetova disclosed on Friday that Washington pays $17.5 million each year in rent for an airbase at an international airport near the Kyrgyz capital.

The SCO member presidents will be joined by Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad (his second summit) and Mongolian President Nambaryn Enkhbayar as well as Pakistani Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri and Indian Oil and Gas Minister Murli Deora, all representing countries that have "observer" status in the SCO.

MOSCOW. (Jibek Syzdykova for RIA Novosti) - Developing as an international agency, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has been responding to the geopolitical situation in Europe, Asia and the rest of the world. Former Soviet republic made repeated attempts to streamline integration by setting up different associations, but they were not destined to live for many reasons. Experts are unanimous that the SCO is a success. Many call it a universal model of international partnership and this is no exaggeration.