Originally Published as ‘Is Regional Cooperation Possible Without Bilateral Cooperation?’ International Affairs: Politics, Economics, Law, December 2025. 11-20. DOI: 10.63407/639302

Abstract

This paper argues that while regional cooperation is often viewed as a positive good, it is not sustainable in the long term without strong ties between its constituents. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization exemplifies this reality, given the significant and long-standing tensions between two of its members, India and China. The essay examines the contradictions in Sino-Indian relations and the difficulties in the Russia-India-China trilateral mechanism to underscore that the SCO’s progress is not what it seems. It raises some questions for the SCO and offers a set of recommendations to address, however indirectly, some of these challenges.