Russian top officials discussing CSTO summit with their counterparts

DUSHANBE, September 15. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu and Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev took part on Monday in a joint session of the Councils of Foreign Ministers and of Defence Ministers along with the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), a security alliance of six former Soviet republics. "Today’s meeting somewhat differs from common practice," Tajikistan’s Foreign Minister Sirodzhan Aslov said in opening remarks. "We are meeting not on the eve but actually two hours earlier than the session of the Collective Security Council." "This circumstance urges us to start operative and well-coordinated work as the leaders’ schedule is very tense," the minister said. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that 24 issues were put on the agenda, with "enhancement of the system of collective security, stepping up of cooperation in defence and peacekeeping potential, the optimisation of the SCTO management of military component and the response to emergencies" among them. At least ten documents are to be signed at the regular session of the CSTO Council of Collective Security, including the leaders’ statement on key approaches to the current international agenda. After the summit, Armenia will take over the one-year presidency of the CSTO. The Collective Security Treaty was signed in 1992 and the Collective Security Treaty Organization comprising Russia and former Soviet republics of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan was established ten years later. The organization’s top priorities are "strengthening of peace, international and regional security and stability, protection of independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of its member states". Read more