Context: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) was founded by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan to address border issues. The organization has grown to include 10 member states over the past 25 years. Belarus was admitted to the SCO in 2024.
During the June 15, 2026 episode of the political talk show Ekspertnyi klub on Belarusian Radio’s First National Channel, host Maksim Uhlianitsa asked how Belarus’s participation in the SCO affects the lives of ordinary citizens. Iryna Novikava, a professor and Doctor of Economic Sciences who heads a department at BSTU, stated that Belarus can trade profitably with the organization’s member countries thanks to the absence of tariffs.
“It is very easy to trace. First of all, if you open the statistics — even an ordinary worker can open them and see what volume of goods goes to SCO countries.. And now imagine if we remove these figures from our gross product,” Novikava said.
“Look, but someone might say: we traded without the SCO, and we will continue to do so. Why wouldn’t we?” Uhlianitsa asked.
“Let me explain why. It’s one thing when you have a free trade zone, and you trade without tariffs — that’s a commodity… We were just talking about oil: when oil goes up, the price rises. It’s the same when you export goods…” Novikava replied.
However, tariffs between SCO member states have not been abolished. The organization has not made a decision to establish a free trade zone. The simplification of trade procedures between member states is still only under discussion.
At the SCO summit in China in 2025, Aleksandr Lukashenko stated that he welcomed the intensification of dialogue aimed at simplifying trade procedures. In an interview with BelTA ahead of this summit, First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Lukashevich said that Belarus hopes to advance initiatives to simplify customs procedures among SCO member states. The phrasing of “intensifying dialogue” and “advancing initiatives” suggests this is not about an existing free trade zone but rather about intentions and discussions.
The SCO’s action plan through 2030 also confirms this. It provides for regular meetings of the Special Working Group on Trade Facilitation, the development of recommendations, and the exchange of information on tariffs. In other words, tariffs between member countries remain in place.
Exports from Belarus to SCO countries do not prove that membership in the organization gave the country trade advantages. Belarus exports $31 billion worth of goods to the nine SCO member states. Russia, China, and Kazakhstan account for almost all of this amount — $30 billion. Belarus had been trading with Russia and China for a long time before joining the SCO. Kazakhstan, on the other hand, is a member of the EAEU, which has a tariff-free trade zone. Therefore, there is no evidence suggesting that Belarus’s membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has led to increased exports.
