CSTO Summit Sets Up Crisis Response Center

YEREVAN — The leaders of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) member-states have decided to set up a joint crisis response center to exchange information on common threats, including terrorism, and make decisions in real time.

Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian, who is hosting a meeting of the CSTO summit on October 14 in Yerevan, made the announcement concerning the new response center during a press conference.

“Among the key results of the session I would point out the adoption of the CSTO Collective Security Strategy. The works that lasted for over 5 years for the elaboration of the document are over”, President Sarkisian said, adding that CSTO’s Yerevan Strategy envisages the priorities of the Organization until 2025 and reinforces all the guidelines for the future development in all the directions.

The Armenian president stated that the heads of the states once again reaffirmed the role of the Organization as a key tool for fostering peace and stability, and ensuring security and sovereignty of the member states.

“Our CSTO partners expressed support for the Vienna and St. Petersburg agreements on Nagorno Karabakh issue, aimed at preventing escalation in the conflict zone, stabilization of the situation and creation of favorable conditions for the continuation of the peace process. The necessity of exclusively peaceful settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict was reaffirmed at the session. The heads of states also expressed support to the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs in Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement, based on the international law, UN charter, Helsinki Final Act, particularly in the framework of non-use of force or its threat, territorial integrity of states, and right to self-determination of nations” Sarkisian said.

Sarkisian also said the issue of a new secretary-general of the CSTO will be discussed at a summit of the grouping in Russia’s St. Petersburg at the end of the year.

During the meeting, the CSTO also adopted documents including agreements on drafting a unified list of terrorist organizations, a collective security strategy for the period till 2025, and a document on measures to counter international terrorism and extremism.

Senior officials from six former Soviet republics, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, are attending the gathering in the Armenian capital.

In addition to heads of state, the foreign ministers and defense ministers of the CSTO’s member states are in Yerevan for the talks.

As leaders gathered in Yerevan, Armenia formally transferred its chairmanship of the CSTO’s Council of Foreign Ministers to Belarus.

The CSTO is a regional security group of former Soviet republics whose members are Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan.