BEIJING – A joint military exercise of the Shanghai CooperationOrganisation (SCO) member states to be held in Russia in which Indian andPakistani armies are taking part for the first time will help ease tensionsbetween the two neighbours and promote positive interactions, Chineseexperts have said.

Member states of the SCO will participate in the joint military drilldubbed Peace Mission 2018 to promote mutual trust, cooperation andcoordination against terrorist threats and to maintain regional peace andstability, the China Daily reported today.

The drill will follow the 18th SCO Summit, scheduled for June 9 and 10 inQingdao, Shandong province, the daily said.

The summit will be attended by a host of world leaders including PrimeMinister Narendra Modi.

The last exercise of the SCO was held in Kyrgyzstan in September 2016. The2018 exercise will be the first for India and Pakistan since becoming fullmembers of the SCO in 2017, the daily reported.

The SCO was founded at a summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the Presidents ofRussia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.India and Pakistan became its members last year.

It also will be the first time India and Pakistan take part in a militaryexercise together since their independence, though their militaries havepreviously worked on United Nations peacekeeping missions, the daily said.

Li Xing, a professor of international relations at Beijing NormalUniversity, said India and Pakistan joining the exercise represents a newheight in security cooperation through the SCO.

“India and Pakistan have had many conflicts, but the SCO exercise canfacilitate positive interactions between the two militaries and help easetensions between the two countries,” Li said.

Li Li, a researcher of South Asian countries at China Institutes ofContemporary International Relations, said many exchange mechanisms betweenPakistan and India have been halted due to constant border tensions.

“It is very rare for the Indian and Pakistani militaries to interact witheach other,” she said.

“The SCO is a great platform for member nations to build mutual trust,improve their ability to tackle terrorist threats and maintain regionalpeace and security,” she told the daily.

The drill’s command post exercise will take place at the Chebarkulskytraining ground in the Ural Mountains.

Chiefs of general staff of the SCO nations will also hold a meeting duringthe joint military drills.

The exercises are biannual, multinational drills with the goal of enhancingcounterterrorism coordination and cooperation among the eight membercountries, the paper said.

India’s membership was strongly pushed by Russia while Pakistan’s entryinto the grouping was backed by China. With the expansion of the grouping,SCO now represents over 40% of humanity and nearly 20% of the global GDP.

India is hopeful that cooperation in security and counter-terrorism amongSCO members can play a major role in addressing the threat of terrorism inthe region.

It is also keen on deepening its security-related cooperation with the SCOand its Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS) which specifically dealswith issues relating to security and defence.