President Lukashenko of Belarus said in Minsk on the 9th that Belarus planned to complete the procedures for joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) by June this year. Lukashenko said that Belarus, as an observer country, is implementing relevant legal procedures to legally become a full member of the SCO. Belarus plans to complete the procedures for joining the SCO before the SCO Summit held in India this year. Belarus became a dialogue partner of the SCO in 2010, an observer of the SCO in 2015, and submitted its application to join the SCO in July 2022. In September 2022, the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO member states signed the procedural document to launch the acceptance of Belarus as a member state. On February 9 this year, Lukashenko signed a presidential decree approving the draft memorandum on Belarus' obligation to obtain the status of SCO member states. (Xinhua News Agency)