The leaders and officials from an Asian security group an international group founded to counter Western alliances have met in the capital, Islamabad to discuss how to boost security cooperation and economic ties. Wednesday's meeting of the heads of the council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization began with opening remarks from Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister of the host country whose government is currently struggling to eliminate terrorism and overcome one of the worst economic crises. Sharif received the leaders and officials from the member states before they sat down for the formal proceedings. The group was founded in 2001 by China and Russia to counter Western alliances. Other members include Iran, India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
