The Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) is an inter-governmental regional organization encompassing countries from Europe, Caucuses and Central Asia, Middle East and South Asia with more than 460 million inhabitants and over 8 million square kilometers connecting Russia to Persian Gulf and China to Europe. The overall objective of the Organization is the sustainable economic development of its Member States and the Region as a whole.

Established as Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD) in 1964 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey, the Organization was renamed as “ECO” in 1985.