Iran is joining the SCO, and Hungary has had its funding cut and may be expelled from the EU

A memorandum of understanding was signed in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to grant Iran full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian wrote about this on Twitter.

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He noted that he signed a document on Iran’s full membership in the SCO with the organization’s Secretary General Zhang Ming in Samarkand.

“From now on, we have entered a new stage in various economic, trade, transit and energy cooperation,” Abdollahian emphasized.

_{The SCO was founded in 1996 by the leaders of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Türkiye is a dialogue partner of the SCO.}

Before Uzbekistan joined the SCO in 2001, the organization was called the Shanghai Five. Subsequently, India and Pakistan became full members of the organization.

In 2005, Iran became an observer country of the SCO. The process of Iran becoming a full member of the organization began in 2021.

_{The summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) takes place on September 15-16 in Samarkand under the chairmanship of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.}

The SCO summit is attended by both heads of member and observer states of the organization, as well as leaders of invited countries, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

At the same time, another geopolitical process is gaining momentum in Europe. Hungary may be expelled from the EU due to accusations of corruption by the Viktor Orban regime and this country’s failure to support pan-European sanctions against Russia. This statement was made by Minister of European Affairs Mikulas Beck.

“In the EU, negotiations are often difficult and can be carried out by many countries. But Hungary, in my opinion, has come a long way to the edge of a kind of abyss, and now it must decide: to move away from this edge or take a risk and jump, the consequences of which I don’t want to speculate on,” he said, adding that he accepts the possibility of Hungary’s exit from the EU. The video recording with the minister is presented by Czech Radio on its YouTube channel.

Earlier, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry raised the question of the advisability of further sanctions against Russia with the European Commission, RT writes. They said that the restrictions cause more harm to Europe itself.

Without waiting for radical organizational conclusions regarding Budapest, the European Commission plans to recommend cutting funding for the administration of Prime Minister Viktor Orban due to fears of large-scale bribery in Hungary.

_{The European Commission plans to formally approve its assessment on Sunday, EU officials told Bloomberg. EU governments will then make a final decision within three months. It is reported that the support of a majority of member states is required for the commission's proposal to enter into force.}

Hungary has become the first country to be investigated under new rules allowing the EU to punish members who undermine its financial interests. The European Commission has spent months investigating "the erosion of the rule of law during Hungary's current Prime Minister Viktor Orban's time in office," Bloomberg adds.

“Even if, unfortunately, I am not in a position to report any positive developments today, I hope that the current procedure will give the Hungarian authorities the opportunity to provide adequate and responsive responses to the concerns raised,” said EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders.

The commission plans to ask EU leaders to give Orban time to make good on his promises to curb corruption, one of the officials said. Hungary will have one month to act in accordance with the recommendations of the EU executive, but this period could be extended. The final decision must be made within three months.

_{Orban's cabinet, which has lost access to EU funding pending the outcome of the investigation, hopes to receive more than 40 billion euros in EU funding until 2027. It recently proposed creating an anti-bribery agency and amending a number of laws, particularly on public procurement, to allay the concerns of the EU executive.}