TSAMTO, November 23. A plenary session of the CSTO Collective Security Council session was held in Minsk on November 23 under the chairmanship of President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko.
The session of the Collective Security Council of the Collective Security Treaty Organization in Minsk was attended by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, President of Russia Vladimir Putin, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon and Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization Imangali Tasmagambetov.
After the negotiations in a narrow format, a plenary meeting of the Collective Security Council of the CSTO was held. On the Russian side, the meeting was attended by Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev, Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration – Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia to Belarus Boris Gryzlov.
According to the Kremlin's press service, the session discussed key issues of interaction between the CSTO members, including further improvement of the collective security system, as well as current international and regional problems.
As Vladimir Putin noted in his speech, the CSTO member states promptly agreed on positions on topical political and military-strategic issues, acute problems of the regional and international agenda.
"It is important that this year the CSTO's contacts with our natural partners have also developed, I mean the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the CIS," the Russian president added.
He drew particular attention to joint efforts to improve the collective rapid deployment and rapid response forces, aviation and peacekeeping forces of the CSTO.
According to Alexander Lukashenko, the summit participants discussed the situation in the Caucasus and the "dissatisfaction" of one of the Council members. He stressed that problematic issues need to be resolved at the negotiating table, and not to make demarches.
Following the results of the session of the Collective Security Council (CSTO), five leaders of the CSTO member states signed a package of documents in Minsk, including a declaration and a decision on measures to develop the CSTO crisis response system.
In addition, signed:
- a decision on recommendations on the procedure for mutual settlements for transferred materiel and services provided between contingents of troops (collective forces) CSTO;
- regulations on the joint press center;
- decision on the chief of the Joint Staff of the organization;
- decision on the allocation of quota positions in the secretariat of the organization;
- decision on the structure of the Joint Staff;
- decision on the organization's budget for 2024;
- the decision on the chairmanship and holding of the next session of the SCB.
Minsk will preside over the CSTO in 2023. The organization includes six states: Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The meeting was attended by all the leaders of the member countries of the association, except for the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.
The Kremlin expressed regret over his refusal to come to Minsk. At the same time, Moscow expects Yerevan to continue working within the framework of the CSTO, Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
