Afghanistan likely to dominate summit

The 12th Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit opened in Beijing on Tuesday, ahead of next week's International Conference on Afghanistan in Kabul on June 14.

Therefore, even though the agenda for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit is one of finalizing its membership procedures, Afghanistan will still set the tone and tenor of proceedings.

Without doubt, Afghanistan has been the strongest reason for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization taking on a larger geopolitical role in the Eurasian region. And an expanded Shanghai Cooperation Organization is seen as most effective multilateral forum to stabilize not just post-US Afghanistan but also the larger arch of radical political Islam, from unrest in the Ferghana Valley across the Amu Darya into the Afghanistan-Pakistan theater.