A memorandum granting Azerbaijan the status of a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was signed at the SCO Secretariat in Beijing on Monday. The status was approved at the SCO summit in Ufa (Russia), says a report published on the Uzbek Foreign Ministry website.

Uzbekistan has been the SCO chair country since July 2015.

"Shanghai Cooperation Organization Secretary-General Rashid Alimov and Foreign Minister of the Azerbaijani Republic Elmar Mammadyarov signed the memorandum," the report said.

The document defined main areas of cooperation between the SCO and Azerbaijan, among them the fight against terrorism, extremism, separatism and drug trafficking, interaction in trade, investments, energy, telecommunications, agriculture, culture, healthcare and tourism, and mutual assistance in the prevention and cleanup of man-made and natural disasters, etc.

The open-ended memorandum will take effect on the date the Azerbaijani government notifies the SCO Secretariat about the accomplishment of domestic procedures by diplomatic channels.

Ambassadors and permanent representatives of SCO member states to the SCO Secretariat took part in the ceremony.

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