Agreement about collective security signed on May 15, 1992 in Tashkent by the heads of six CIS member states - Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan. In September 1993, Azerbaijan joined it, in December 1993 - Georgia and Belarus. The Treaty entered into force for all nine countries in April 1994 for a period of five years. In April 1999, the Protocol on the extension of the Collective Security Treaty was signed by six of them (except for Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan).
On May 14, 2002, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was established, uniting Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. In June 2006, a decision was made
"On the restoration of the membership of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the CSTO", however, in December 2012, the membership of this country was suspended. Currently, the CSTO includes six states - Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.
On October 7, 2002, the CSTO Charter was adopted in Chisinau. According to him, the main goals Organizations are the strengthening of peace, international and regional security and stability, the protection on a collective basis of the independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of the member states, in achieving which the member states give priority to political means.
In 2017, the CSTO celebrated the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Collective Security Treaty and the 15th anniversary of the creation of the Organization. The jubilee Declaration adopted by the presidents notes that the CSTO is a dynamically developing basis for equal cooperation, ensuring a timely and adequate response to the changing situation in the world, and the formed legal framework of the Organization allows bringing cooperation between the CSTO member states to a qualitatively new level, strengthening the commonality of strategic goals and transform the CSTO into one of the effective multifunctional structures that ensure security at the regional level.
The supreme body of the CSTO, which considers the fundamental issues of the Organization's activities, is Collective Security Council (CSC) consisting of heads of state. The chairman of the CSC is the head of the state presiding over the Organization (since November 8, 2018 - Kyrgyzstan). Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Ministers of Defense, Secretaries of the Security Councils of the Member States, the Secretary General of the Organization and invited persons may take part in the meetings of the CSC. Sessions of the CSC CSTO are held at least once a year. At the session of the CSC CSTO (November 8, 2018), protocols were signed on amending the statutory documents, according to which the head of government can be a member of the Council. Protocols are subject to ratification. Not yet entered into force.
The advisory and executive bodies of the CSTO are Council of Foreign Ministers (CMFA), coordinating the foreign policy activities of the CSTO member states; Council of Defense Ministers (CMO), ensuring the interaction of the Member States in the field military policy, military construction and military-technical cooperation; Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils (CSSC) in charge of national security issues. Meetings of these bodies are held at least twice a year.
In the period between sessions of the CSC, the coordination of the activities of the CSTO is entrusted to Permanent Council(effective since March 2004), which consists of permanent and plenipotentiary representatives of the Member States.
The permanent working bodies of the CSTO are Secretariat and joint headquarters Organizations (operating since January 2004).
The Military Committee under the CMO, the Coordinating Council of the Heads of the Competent Authorities of the CSTO Member States on Combating Illegal Migration (CSTO) and the Coordinating Council for Emergency Situations of the CSTO Member States (CSTO) have been formed. members of the CSTO (KSChS). Since 2006, the Working Group on Afghanistan has been operating under the CSTO Ministerial Council. In 2016, under the CSTO CMO, a Working Group was created to coordinate the joint training of military personnel and scientific work. Under the CSTO CSTO, there is a Working Group of Experts on Combating Terrorism and Extremism and a Working Group on Information Policy and Security. In December 2014, a decision was made to establish a CSTO Consultative Coordination Center for Response to Computer Incidents. Since October 2017, the CSTO Crisis Response Center has started working in test mode.
The parliamentary dimension of the CSTO is developing. On November 16, 2006, on the basis of the IPA CIS in St. Petersburg, CSTO Parliamentary Assembly(PA CSTO), which is the body of inter-parliamentary cooperation of the Organization. On May 20, 2019, a regular meeting of the CSTO PA will be held in Bishkek. Between plenary sessions, the activities of the CSTO PA are carried out in the format of the Council of the Parliamentary Assembly and the Permanent Commissions (on defense and security issues, on political issues and international cooperation, on socio-economic and legal issues), meetings of the Information and Analytical Legal Center of the Assembly and the Expert Advisory Council under the CSTO PA are held.
On November 24, 2016, the Chairman of the State Duma was elected Chairman of the CSTO PA Federal Assembly Russian Federation V.V.Volodin.
Observer status at the CSTO PA has the People's Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, the Volesi Jirga of the National Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia. Representatives of Cuba and other countries participate in the meetings of the CSTO PA as guests.
The CSTO carries out its activities in cooperation with various international and regional organizations.
Since December 2, 2004, the Organization has an observer status in the UN General Assembly. On March 18, 2010, a Joint Declaration on Cooperation between the UN Secretariats and the CSTO was signed in Moscow, which provides for the establishment of interaction between the two organizations, in particular, in the field of peacekeeping. In its development, on September 28, 2012, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in New York between the CSTO Secretariat and the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations. During the 71st session of the UN General Assembly in November 2016, a resolution was adopted on cooperation between the UN and the CSTO, in which the CSTO is considered as an organization capable of giving an adequate response to wide range challenges and threats in their area of responsibility. Another similar resolution is planned to be adopted during the current
73rd session of the UN General Assembly. Productive contacts are maintained with other UN structures, including the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the UN Security Council, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.
In October 2007, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the CSTO Secretariat and the SCO Secretariat. In December 2009 - Memorandum of Cooperation between the CSTO Secretariat and the CIS Executive Committee. On May 28, 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed on issues of cooperation and interaction between the CSTO Secretariat, the SCO RATS and the CIS ATC. In April 2019, a meeting of the secretaries general of the CIS, SCO and CSTO was held.
Contacts are maintained with the OSCE, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the International Organization for Migration and other international structures. The CSTO stands for the development of a dialogue with ASEAN and the African Union.
As the Organization develops, its contractual and legal base is strengthened, which, in addition to the statutory documents, includes about 50 different agreements and protocols. Of fundamental importance are the set of decisions of the CSTO CSC on the creation of collective forces, foreign policy coordination, the Collective Security Strategy, the Anti-Drug Strategy, the Roadmap for creating conditions for using the CSTO peacekeeping potential in the interests of the UN global peacekeeping activities, etc.
Military cooperation in the CSTO format is carried out in accordance with the decision of the CSTO CSC "On the Main Directions for the Development of Military Cooperation of the CSTO Member States for the Period until 2020" adopted in 2012.
The components of the power potential of the CSTO collective security system have been formed.
In 2001, to ensure the security of the CSTO member states in the Central Asian region, the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces (CSRF) were created. The Collective Rapid Reaction Forces (CRRF) of the CSTO, formed in 2009, including military contingents and formations of forces, became a multifunctional component of the CSTO collective security system. special purpose. The Peacekeeping Forces (MS) of the Organization were created, the corresponding Agreement on which entered into force in 2009. In order to increase the efficiency of the actions of the collective forces in accordance with the decision of the CSTO CSC adopted in 2014, the formation of the Collective Aviation Forces (CAS) of the CSTO was completed.
The composition of the forces and means of the collective security system has been determined and normatively fixed, and their joint operational and combat training is conducted on a regular basis.
From October 1 to November 2, 2018, on the territory of Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, operational-strategic exercises were held with the CSTO contingents "Combat Brotherhood - 2018", which included the tactical-special exercise "Poisk-2018" with reconnaissance forces and means (1-5 October, Kazakhstan), "Air Bridge - 2018" with the Collective Aviation Forces (October 1-14, Russia), "Interaction - 2018" with the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces (October 10-13, Kyrgyzstan), "Indestructible Brotherhood - 2018" with CSTO peacekeeping forces (October 30 - November 2, Russia).
On May 18 - 23, 2018, in the Almaty region of the Republic of Kazakhstan, exercises of special forces of the Ministry of Internal Affairs from the formation of special forces "Cobalt-2018" were held.
In the field of military-technical cooperation, mechanisms are being improved for the supply of weapons and special equipment to the allies, the provision of military-technical assistance to the CSTO member states, and joint training of military personnel has been organized. The concept of training military personnel has been approved. Since 2006, the CSTO Interstate Commission for Military-Economic Cooperation has been operating. On November 8, 2018, the session of the CSC CSTO adopted the Decision on the appointment of Yu.I. Borisov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, to this post.
On November 20, 2012, the Protocol on the deployment of military infrastructure facilities on the territories of the CSTO member states, signed at the session of the CSTO CSC (December 2011), came into force, according to which decisions
on the deployment of military infrastructure facilities of "third" countries on the territory of the CSTO member states can be accepted only in the absence of official objections from all member states of the Organization.
Within the framework of the KSOPN (established in 2005) there are three Working Groups: on the coordination of operational-search activities, on the exchange of information resources and on personnel training. Chairman of the Coordinating Council - State Secretary - Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia I.N. Zubov.
The fundamental document in the field of anti-drug activities of the CSTO is the “Anti-Drug Strategy of the CSTO Member States” approved at the December (2014) session of the CSTO CSC in Moscow
for 2015-2020”. Since 2003, the international complex anti-drug operation "Channel" has been carried out on the territory of the CSTO member states (since 2008 it has been transformed into a permanent operation). Total from 2003 to 2019 30 stages of operation "Channel" were carried out. As a result of the last stage of the Canal Center (February 26 - March 1 of this year), 11.5 tons of drugs were seized from illegal circulation, 784 drug crimes were revealed, about 4 thousand criminal cases were initiated.
The operation was attended by law enforcement, border, customs authorities, security services, financial intelligence units of the CSTO member states. The observers were representatives of the law enforcement agencies of Afghanistan, Great Britain, Iran, Italy, China, Mongolia, the United States, Turkey, France and employees of UNODC, Interpol, the OSCE, the Program for the Prevention of the Spread of Drugs in Central Asia, the Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism, the Committee of Heads of Law Enforcement Units of the CIS Customs Services, the SCO RATS, the Bureau for Coordinating the Fight against Organized Crime and Other Dangerous Types of Crime on the Territory of the CIS Member States, the Criminal Intelligence Center for Combating Drugs of the Council cooperation between the Arab states of the Persian Gulf.
In the field of combating illegal migration of citizens of third (in relation to the CSTO) countries, under the auspices of the Organization, the Coordinating Council of the Heads of the Competent Authorities of the CSTO Member States on Combating Illegal Migration (CSTO), as well as the Working Group, whose members are the leaders structural divisions internal affairs bodies, security services, migration and border services. Since 2008, operational and preventive measures "Illegal" have been carried out, the purpose of which is to identify and suppress violations of migration legislation. Since 2018, Illegal has been given the status of a permanent operation. Hundreds of thousands of crimes in this area have been suppressed, more than 1,600 persons who were on the international wanted list have been detained. As part of Operation Illegal-2018, over 73,000 violations of migration laws by persons from third countries were identified, dubious financial transactions were identified, channels of human trafficking were uncovered, and about 1,550 criminal cases were initiated.
On a regular basis, special measures are being taken to identify and suppress channels for recruiting citizens into the ranks of terrorist organizations, and effective work is being done to prevent militants from entering the CAR from zones of armed conflicts. In April-May 2019, for the first time, a set of operational and preventive measures was taken to block recruitment channels, entry and exit of citizens of the CSTO member states to participate in terrorist activities, as well as neutralize the resource base of international terrorist organizations in the CSTO space under the name "Mercenary".
In order to combat crimes in the information environment, Operation PROXY is being carried out (since 2014 - on an ongoing basis). In 2018, as a result of the operation, 345,207 information resources were identified aimed at inciting ethnic and religious hatred, spreading terrorist and extremist ideas in the interests of criminal groups, etc. The activity of 54,251 resources was suspended and 720 criminal cases were initiated. As a result of countering the use of the Internet for illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic and psychoactive substances, 1832 illegal information resources were identified, 1748 of them were blocked, 560 facts of criminal activity were uncovered. 594 criminal cases were initiated. 120 criminal cases have been initiated on the revealed facts testifying to criminal activity related to illegal migration and human trafficking in the CSTO member states.
Foreign policy coordination is built on the basis of the annual consultation plans of representatives of the CSTO member states on foreign policy, security and defense issues, as well as lists of topics for joint statements. Working meetings at the level of foreign ministers of the CSTO member states on the sidelines of the session of the UN General Assembly and the OSCE Ministerial Council have become regular.
In September 2011, the "Collective Instructions to the Permanent Representatives of the CSTO Member States to International Organizations" were adopted (updated in July 2016). Coordination meetings of ambassadors of member states in third countries are held. In 2018, it was decided to appoint persons responsible for interaction on cooperation issues within the framework of the CSTO in foreign institutions.
Since 2011, about 80 joint statements of the CSTO member states have been adopted at various international platforms.
On September 26, 2018, in New York, on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly, a traditional working meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the CSTO member states was held. An exchange of views took place on priority issues on the UN agenda, interaction between the CSTO and the UN, the fight against terrorism and ensuring regional security, and the preparations for the upcoming meeting of the Collective Security Council (CSC) of the CSTO were discussed. Joint statements were adopted “On the situation in Afghanistan, the strengthening of the position of ISIS in the northern provinces of the country and the growth of the drug threat from the territory of the IRA”, “On efforts to stabilize the situation in the Middle East and North Africa”, “On the intensification of cooperation between the CSTO and regional organizations and structures”.
The next meeting of the CSTO CSC was held on November 8, 2018 in Astana. The final declaration of the CSTO summit was adopted, as well as a statement by the heads of the CSTO member states on coordinated measures against participants in armed conflicts on the side of international terrorist organizations. The Council approved a package of documents on the legal registration of the status of an observer and partner of the CSTO and a number of other documents in the field of military cooperation, crisis response, countering international terrorism, and illegal migration.
publishes full version document.
Brief historical background
The Collective Security Treaty (CST) was signed on May 15, 1992, six months after the collapse of the USSR. Its main task was to preserve the interaction of the armies of the newly formed independent states in the post-Soviet space.
The founding states were Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. In 1993, Azerbaijan, Belarus and Georgia joined the agreement.
In 1999, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan refused to renew their membership in the Collective Security Treaty and focused on work in GUAM ( GUAM (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Moldova) is an anti-Russian organization created in 1997 to establish horizontal ties between post Soviet republics in the interests of the United States and the European Union. During the membership of Uzbekistan, the organization was called GUUAM. Currently, GUAM is not an active and really working structure, despite the fact that no formal decision was made to dissolve it, and the Kyiv-based GUAM Secretariat regularly issues press releases in Russian about its work).
In 2002, a decision was made to transform the CST into a full-fledged international organization.
On October 7, 2002, the Charter and the Agreement on the legal status of the CSTO were adopted in Chisinau. The documents on the creation of the CSTO were ratified by all participating countries and on September 18, 2003 they entered into force.
On November 16, 2006, the heads of the parliaments of the CSTO member countries adopted a resolution on the creation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA).
In 2009, the Collective Rapid Reaction Force (CRRF) was created. Their task is to repel military aggression, to carry out special operations to combat international terrorism, transnational organized crime, drug trafficking, as well as the elimination of the consequences of emergency situations. CRRF exercises are held on a regular basis.
On December 21, 2015, the heads of the CSTO member states adopted a Statement on Combating International Terrorism, in which they declared their intention to "consistently strengthen the power potential of the CSTO, increase its counter-terrorism component, and increase the combat readiness of the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces in order to effectively counter new challenges and threats."
On October 14, 2016, the Collective Security Council (CSC) of the CSTO in Yerevan adopted a decision to approve the Collective Security Strategy until 2025, as well as additional measures to combat terrorism and establish a Crisis Response Center.
Since 2003, the CSTO Secretary General has been Nikolai Bordyuzha.
Elected Chairman of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly on November 24, 2016 Viacheslav Volodin.
CSTO: Birth traumas and irremovable contradictions
The biggest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century is the collapse of Soviet Union- had a particularly serious impact on the ability of states that suddenly and often not of their own free will to maintain an adequate level of security, both external and internal.
If the European post-Soviet republics (with the exception of Moldova, which failed to curb its own nationalists and as a result lost Transnistria) in the early 90s faced a maximum increase in crime, then the Central Asian countries found themselves alone with the threat of international terrorism and religious extremism.
The most serious situation was in Tajikistan, with its long border with Afghanistan. Civil War in this country threatened with extremely serious consequences not only for Tajikistan itself, but also for neighboring countries. That is why Russia, which took over the protection of the Tajik-Afghan border, and Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan actively participated in national reconciliation in the republic.
“The leading figures of Tajikistan have repeatedly noted the important military-political role of the CST in the process of achieving national reconciliation. And now, within the framework of the CSTO, this country is receiving significant political, military and military-technical assistance, ”says the version of the CSTO website that worked until 2012 in the General Information section.
The CSTO was initially focused primarily on solving the problems of maintaining security in Central Asia. A few more quotes from the old version of the organization's website:
“At the initial stage, the Treaty contributed to the creation of the national armed forces of the participating States, to the provision of adequate external conditions for their independent state building. This is evidenced by the relevance of the Treaty in a number of cases of application of its provisions.
The possibilities of the Treaty were activated in the autumn of 1996, in the summer of 1998 in connection with the dangerous development of events in Afghanistan in close proximity to the borders of the Central Asian member states of the Collective Security Treaty, to prevent attempts by extremists to destabilize the situation in this region.
In 1999 and 2000, as a result of promptly implemented measures by the member states of the Collective Security Treaty, with the participation of Uzbekistan, the threat created by large-scale actions of armed groups of international terrorists in southern Kyrgyzstan and other regions of Central Asia was neutralized.
The normative legal acts on the basis of which the CST structures worked are the Declaration of the CST member states adopted in 1995, the Collective Security Concept of the CST member states, the document on the Main Directions for Deepening Military Cooperation, and the implementation plan for the Collective Security Concept and Main Directions for Deepening Military Cooperation.
In 1999, the Plan for the second stage of the formation of a collective security system was approved, which provided for the formation of coalition (regional) groupings of troops (forces) in the Eastern European, Caucasian and Central Asian directions.
In the 1990s, the Collective Security Treaty had no chance of becoming a full-fledged and effective international organization due to the large number of claims of its members to each other.
Armenia and Azerbaijan, both then and now, were, in fact, at war with each other. Georgia, both then and now, accused Russia of “separatism” of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, although it should be noted that Moscow in the 1990s pursued a much tougher policy towards unrecognized states than in the 2000s. Abkhazia was actually in an economic blockade, South Ossetia and Transnistria were left to their own devices.
Uzbekistan tried to pursue what Tashkent called a “balanced” policy, but as a result, it simply rushed between Moscow and Washington, either entering the Collective Security Treaty, then moving from there to GUAM, then agreeing to the creation of an American military base, then demanding that the United States immediately leave its territory.
Of course, NATO also has examples of countries that “dislike” each other, such as Greece and Turkey, are members of the alliance, but there has not been such tension, let alone direct clashes between them, as in the case of some former members of the CST, for a long time .
But, perhaps, the main problem of the Collective Security Treaty, which was inherited by the CSTO, was the initial rejection of serious attempts to integrate the largest militarily post-Soviet republic after Russia - Ukraine.
Of course, Kyiv and Moscow in the 90s were subjected to serious pressure from the West, the "neutrality" of Ukraine was one of the conditions for the withdrawal nuclear weapons from its territory. But the absence of Ukraine in the defensive alliance created by Russia, of course, laid the foundation for the drift of this country towards NATO and the growing anti-Russian orientation of Ukrainian policy, which reached its climax during the so-called Euromaidan.
The Collective Security Treaty in the form in which it existed in the 1990s could not quickly respond to the challenges of the time, its reform or dissolution was inevitable.
Work on preparations for reformatting the organization began in 2000. An agreement was signed on the basic principles of military-technical cooperation (MTC). In 2001, the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces of the Central Asian Region were created, which were equipped with four battalions from Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan with a total strength of 1,500 people.
In parallel, the bodies of political administration and interstate consultations have been improved. The Council of Foreign and Defense Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils were created. The Secretariat of the CSC was organized, a consultation process was established at the level of the CSC, Ministerial Council of Foreign Ministers and CFR with the participation of deputy ministers of foreign affairs and defense, experts from the participating states, and their plenipotentiaries under the Secretary General of the Collective Security Council.
The decision to transform the Collective Security Treaty into an international one regional organization in accordance with Chapter VIII of the UN Charter was adopted in Moscow in May 2002 by the heads of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.
Neutral Chisinau was chosen as the place for the creation of the CSTO. On October 7, 2002, the capital of Moldova hosted a summit of the CIS heads of state, within the framework of which the heads of the CST member states signed the statutory documents on the transformation of the latter into the CSTO.
Moldova, we note, just like Ukraine, from the very beginning of its independence, refrained from participating in military cooperation with Russia - because of dissatisfaction with the presence of Russian troops in Transnistria. The communist who headed this republic in 2002 Vladimir Voronin was considered a "pro-Russian" president until November next year when at the last moment he refused to sign the already initialed document on the Transnistrian settlement, the so-called "Kozak Memorandum". After that, there were no more talks about the possible membership of Moldova in the CSTO.
CSTO in 2002-2016: through contradictions to strengthen the union
In 2002-2003, when the CSTO was created, the main world threat, as now, most countries considered international terrorism. The US was operating in Afghanistan and preparing to invade Iraq. Russian-American relations experienced a period of relative recovery after a sharp deterioration in 1999, when the US and NATO bombed Yugoslavia without UN authorization.
Initially, within the framework of the CSTO, no serious political component was planned, only ensuring the security of the participating countries. Political dialogue in Central Asia was conducted either on the basis of the CIS or within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), established in 2001 on the basis of the "Shanghai Five", formed as a result of signing in 1996-1997. between Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Russia and Tajikistan confidence-building agreements in the military field. Uzbekistan also joined the SCO. The aims and objectives of the SCO were the strengthening of stability and security in a wide area that unites the participating states, the fight against terrorism, separatism, extremism, drug trafficking, development economic cooperation, energy partnership, scientific and cultural interaction.
It should also be emphasized that the CSTO was not seen as an alternative to NATO. The tasks of the organization were security in Central Asia, as well as military-technical cooperation of the participating countries. The unrestrained, like a cancerous tumor, the expansion of NATO has never been an example for CSTO members to follow.
However, over time, it became clear that cooperation within the executive branch alone was not enough - harmonization of legislation was required to ensure the proper level of interaction.
On June 23, 2006, the Minsk session of the CSTO Collective Security Council determined the need to develop the parliamentary dimension of the CSTO within the framework of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly. Based on this decision and on the Convention on the Interparliamentary Assembly of the States Members of the Commonwealth Independent States, the chairmen of the parliaments of the CIS member states of the CSTO at a meeting on November 16, 2006 adopted a resolution on the creation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (PA CSTO).
As stated on the CSTO PA website, “three permanent commissions have been created within the framework of the assembly - on defense and security issues, on political issues and international cooperation, and on socio-economic and legal issues.
In accordance with the Regulations on the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the CSTO PA discusses issues of cooperation between the CSTO member states in the international, military-political, legal and other fields and develops appropriate recommendations that it sends to the Collective Security Council (CSC) and other bodies of the CSTO and national parliaments. In addition, the CSTO PA adopts model legislative and other legal acts aimed at regulating relations within the competence of the CSTO, as well as recommendations for convergence of the laws of the CSTO member states and bringing them into line with the provisions international treaties concluded by these states within the framework of the CSTO".
The full-fledged work of various CSTO structures, unfortunately, has repeatedly been made dependent on the current political or economic situation. For example, negotiations on the creation of a collective rapid reaction force (CRRF), the main fighting force of the CSTO, in June 2009 were overshadowed by the so-called "milk war" between Russia and Belarus. As a result, representatives of Minsk refused to participate in the CSTO meeting under the pretext that military security is impossible without economic security.
This called into question the legitimacy of the decision to create the CRRF, because, according to paragraph 1 of Rule No. 14 of the Rules of Procedure of the CSTO bodies, approved by the Decision of the CSC of June 18, 2004, the non-participation of a member country of the organization in meetings of the Collective Security Council, the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defense Ministers , the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils means the absence of the consent of the member country of the organization to the adoption of decisions considered by these bodies.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko signed a package of documents on the accession of Belarus to the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces only on October 20, 2009.
In June 2010, the President of Kyrgyzstan Roza Otumbaeva appealed to the President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev with a request to bring the CRRF into the territory of this country in connection with the unrest and interethnic clashes in the Osh and Jalalab regions. Medvedev replied that “the criterion for using the CSTO forces is the violation by one state of the borders of another state that is part of this organization. We are not talking about this yet, because all the problems of Kyrgyzstan are rooted inside. They are rooted in the weakness of the former government, in their unwillingness to deal with the needs of the people. I hope that all the problems that exist today will be resolved by the authorities of Kyrgyzstan. The Russian Federation will help.”
This statement was the subject of criticism from the President of Belarus. Alexander Lukashenko said that the CRRF should enter Kyrgyzstan and restore order there. As a result, a compromise decision was made - a reinforced battalion of the 31st Airborne Assault Brigade of the Airborne Forces was delivered to the Russian Kant airbase in Kyrgyzstan to ensure security. Representatives of the CSTO, in turn, took part in the search for the organizers of the riots and ensured the coordination of cooperation to suppress the activities of terrorist groups that actually influenced the situation from Afghanistan. Also, CSTO specialists were engaged in identifying instigators and instigators of hatred on the Internet. Non-lethal special equipment, special equipment, vehicles including helicopters.
Following the events in Kyrgyzstan, CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha issued a special statement, which, in particular, said that all CSTO member countries agreed that the entry of peacekeeping troops into the republic during riots was inexpedient: "The introduction of troops could provoke an even greater aggravation of the situation in the region as a whole," he said.
In 2011, the same Alexander Lukashenko took the initiative to use the CRRF to prevent coups. “Because by war, by the front, no one will go against us, but to make a constitutional coup - many hands itch,” he noted then.
In 2012, the CSTO left Uzbekistan for the second time - among the reasons were both disagreement with the organization's policy towards Afghanistan, and bilateral contradictions with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. This did not become a serious blow to the CSTO - the participation of Uzbekistan during its "second arrival" was largely formal.
However, as the terrorist threat intensified in the Middle East and Central Asia and NATO forces approached the borders of Russia and Belarus, it became clear that there was no alternative to the CSTO in the current situation. Ensuring internal and external security, as well as military-technical cooperation between our countries, is possible only with the constant and effective interaction of all structures responsible for security, including parliamentary interaction.
By 2016, the CSTO came up as a fairly unified and cohesive organization. Exercises of both the CRRF and other structures are regularly held, concepts and strategies are being developed, interaction has been established with the UN, SCO, CIS, EAEU and other international organizations.
On this occasion, the CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha has repeatedly noted that the coverage of the CSTO activities in Russia is not at the proper level.
“I would like to refer to our latest experience - this is the conduct of a motorcycle race through the CSTO member states, with the exception of Armenia, since they were purely technical problems. Representatives of some bike clubs, together with representatives of the Minsk Motorcycle Plant, traveled through all the states of the bloc, met with the population everywhere, laid wreaths at the graves of servicemen who died in the Great Patriotic War. According to their estimates, in all states, including small settlements they know quite well about the CSTO, with the exception of the Russian Federation,” he said at a press conference in 2013.
CSTO PA: great potential for quality
The intensification of inter-parliamentary cooperation within the framework of the CSTO PA with the member countries of the organization, observers and all organizations interested in cooperation is becoming an important element of international security in the Eurasian space and around the world.
A certain optimism about the development of the situation around the CSTO inspires the unanimous election of the Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Volodin to a similar post in the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly.
This, on the one hand, is a traditional decision - earlier the CSTO PA was headed by the speakers of the State Duma of the previous and the year before last convocation Sergei Naryshkin and Boris Gryzlov respectively. But, judging by the changes that took place at the initiative of Vyacheslav Volodin in the State Duma, his chairmanship of the CSTO PA will not be “traditional”.
« It is obvious that the priority direction of the Assembly's work for the next four years will be the implementation of the program to harmonize the national legislation of the member states of the Treaty - work has begun this year, the program is calculated until 2020. And enough tasks have accumulated, among the priorities are security issues. Five draft documents on reconciliation of national laws have already been prepared by the CSTO Standing Committee on Defense and Security. They concern the issues of combating corruption, drug trafficking, countering technological terrorism, training personnel in the direction of "Security in emergency situations", responding to crisis situations.”, - notes one of the Russian federal newspapers.
In his first speech in his new post, Volodin noted that the CSTO currently faces a number of priority tasks, including, in particular, the acceleration of the formation of a single legal space in the field of defense and security on the territory of the CSTO. Among other important areas of work, he named the parliamentary response to crisis situations not only in the CSTO space, but also beyond.
Afghanistan and Serbia are already observers in the CSTO. Iran and Pakistan are due to receive this status in 2017. According to the Vice Speaker of the CSTO PA, Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Yuri Vorobyov, Moldova showed interest in interacting with the CSTO - after the election of a socialist as president Igor Dodon, who has repeatedly stated the need to restore ties with Russia, relations between Moscow and Chisinau may, if not dramatically improve, then at least become less ideological and more pragmatic.
Among the tasks facing the CSTO PA and the organization as a whole, one can also note the need to establish such interaction with the structures of the CIS, the EAEU, the SCO and others, which would exclude duplication of functions and unnecessary competition between the staff of the apparatus of these organizations. All of the above interstate organizations have different tasks, and a “hardware war”, or rather, not even a war, but excessive competition will only lead to a decrease in the effectiveness of interaction in all areas, including security.
The organization itself remains rather closed, too focused on purely specific security issues, which do not always acquire a public character. Experts note that the new chairman of the CSTO PA will be able to give impetus to the public component of the work, firstly, of the Parliamentary Assembly itself, and secondly, of the entire CSTO as a whole.
Here we can say that security issues will also require a clear, understandable, up-to-date legislative process for ensuring. An important factor is the dialogue of civil societies on security issues. Today there is a kind of discussion between those who believe that democratic procedures should dominate the system, and between those who believe that security issues today require a departure from some principles. In this case, Volodin's participation in this discussion will modernize it, raise it to the level of development of the entire civil society. And at the same time, it will bring it into line with legislative needs and constitutional status.
The international agenda in the world remains tense, and the election of the US President Donald Trump added unpredictability to the foreign policy of this strongest and most influential country. In such a situation, states interested in maintaining peace and internal tranquility should unite their efforts as much as possible both in the fight against international terrorism and with the desire of Western countries masquerading as “democratization” and “struggle for human rights” to impose their values and weaken the traditional life style as much as possible. way of life of Eastern Europe, Transcaucasia and Central Asia.
Cooperation within the framework of the CSTO is a vivid example of how the most militarily strongest member of the organization, represented by Russia, does not seek to impose its own values on other members and does not interfere in internal politics their partners.
CSTO
the contract is signed
agreement entered into force
CSTO
the contract is signed
agreement entered into force
May 15
20 April
Development prospects
To strengthen the positions of the CSTO, the collective rapid deployment forces of the Central Asian region are being reformed. This force consists of ten battalions: three from Russia and Kazakhstan and one from Kyrgyzstan. Total population personnel of the collective forces - about 7 thousand people. The aviation component (10 planes and 14 helicopters) is located at the Russian military airbase in Kyrgyzstan.
In connection with Uzbekistan's entry into the CSTO, it is noted that back in 2005, the Uzbek authorities came up with a project to create international "anti-revolutionary" punitive forces in the post-Soviet space within the framework of the CSTO. In preparation for joining this organization, Uzbekistan prepared a package of proposals for its improvement, including the creation of intelligence and counterintelligence structures within its framework, as well as the development of mechanisms that would allow the CSTO to give guarantees of internal security to the Central Asian states.
Goals and objectives
CSTO members
Structure of the CSTO
The supreme body of the Organization is Collective Security Council (SKB). The Council consists of the heads of member states. The Council considers the fundamental issues of the Organization's activities and makes decisions aimed at the implementation of its goals and objectives, as well as ensures coordination and joint activities of the Member States to achieve these goals.
Council of Foreign Ministers (Council of Ministers) is a consultative and executive body of the Organization for the coordination of interaction between member states in the field of foreign policy.
Council of Ministers of Defense (CMO) is a consultative and executive body of the Organization for the coordination of interaction between member states in the field of military policy, military development and military-technical cooperation.
Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils (KSSB) is a consultative and executive body of the Organization for the coordination of interaction between member states in the field of ensuring their national security.
Secretary General of the Organization is the highest administrative officer of the Organization and manages the Secretariat of the Organization. Appointed by the decision of the CSC from among the citizens of the Member States and is accountable to the Council. Currently, he is Nikolai Bordyuzha.
Secretariat of the Organization- a permanent working body of the Organization for the implementation of organizational, informational, analytical and advisory support for the activities of the bodies of the Organization.
Joint Headquarters of the CSTO- a permanent working body of the Organization and the CMO of the CSTO, responsible for preparing proposals and implementing decisions on the military component of the CSTO. From December 1, 2006, it is planned to assign to the joint headquarters the tasks performed by the command and the permanent task force of the headquarters of the collective forces.
CSTO summit in September 2008
see also
- Armed Forces of Belarus
Literature
- Nikolaenko V. D. Organization of the Collective Security Treaty (origins, formation, prospects) 2004 ISBN 5-94935-031-6
Links
- Official website of the CST Organization
Notes
| Strength in international relations | |
|---|---|
| Types of power | Philosophical power Soft power Hard power Political power (Machtpolitik Realpolitik) |
| Types of power status | Near Power Regional Power Great Power Superpower (Potential Superpower Energy Superpower) Hyperpower |
Russia and the CSTO countries intend to form a single list of organizations considered terrorist. Such a decision is planned to be taken at the CSTO summit in Yerevan on October 14, Yury Ushakov, aide to the President of the Russian Federation, told reporters.
According to him, the summit will adopt a document "On the regulation on the formation of a single list of organizations recognized as terrorist in the CSTO format." "That is, here the procedure for the formation and maintenance of a single list is determined, the interested party makes a proposal to recognize this or that organization as a terrorist organization, and the corresponding decision of the CSTO member states is made on the basis of a decision of the judiciary," the aide to the Russian leader explained. He stressed that it is planned to sign 24 documents following the results of the summit. The Kremlin spokesman called the decision on a collective security strategy until 2025 the first among them.
"Here, the priority of political means in ensuring security is fixed, it is noted that terrorism, extremism, recruitment into the ranks of these organizations, incitement of interethnic, interethnic and interfaith conflicts, the use of information technologies in order to have a destructive impact on the situation in states- members," he said.
According to Ushakov, the document "external threats include instability and unresolved conflicts in neighboring states, activities to undermine the balance of power, including the unilateral deployment of missile defense systems, building up the capabilities of global strike concepts, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, activities to disorganize state power and change the constitutional order in member states of the CSTO".
Ushakov also said that "the tasks against the background of these threats have been defined - greater coordination of positions on international and regional problems, improvement of the defense capability of the member states, increasing the combat readiness and combat capability of the armed forces, building up military-technical cooperation, developing cooperation in countering terrorism, organized crime and illegal drug trafficking, improving cooperation on border protection".
Another document will be a list of additional measures to counter international terrorism and extremism in the CSTO format. "This document is important, but it is of a closed nature," Ushakov said.
According to him, at the summit it is planned to adopt a Statement of Heads of State, which reflects common approaches to the main challenges and threats of our time. "In particular, the readiness of the CSTO states to build relations with all members of the world community on the basis of equality is emphasized," the aide to the Russian leader said. He added that "most of the documents are devoted to Syria, the fight against terrorism, and the conviction is expressed that there is no alternative to the Minsk agreements (on a settlement in Ukraine)."
Ushakov noted that the CSTO leaders intend to adopt a separate Statement on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, a Statement on the impact of unilateral actions to deploy global system PRO on international security and stability, Statement on ensuring the security of state borders in the area of responsibility of the CSTO.
Ushakov said that the presidents of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan would take part in the CSTO summit. The ill President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev, according to him, will be replaced by the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan Bakytzhan Sagintayev.
The summit will open with a closed session, followed by a plenary session and a document signing ceremony. The current CSTO Chairman, President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, who will assume the chairmanship of the CSTO, will tell journalists about the results of the summit.
The Kremlin spokesman said the leaders would discuss "the international situation and topical security issues" at the meeting in narrow format. He added that Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will take part in the plenary session from the Russian side. The focus will be on additional measures to counter international terrorism and on the priority areas of the CSTO activities during the presidency of Belarus in 2017.
The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is a military-political union created by the former Soviet republics on the basis of the Collective Security Treaty (CST), signed on May 15, 1992. The contract is renewed automatically every five years.
CSTO members
On May 15, 1992, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan signed a Collective Security Treaty (CST) in Tashkent. Azerbaijan signed the agreement on September 24, 1993, Georgia on September 9, 1993, Belarus on December 31, 1993.
The treaty entered into force on April 20, 1994. The contract was for 5 years and could be extended. On April 2, 1999, the presidents of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed a protocol on the extension of the agreement for the next five-year period, but Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan refused to extend the agreement, in the same year Uzbekistan joined GUUAM.
At the Moscow session of the Collective Security Treaty on May 14, 2002, a decision was made to transform the Collective Security Treaty Organization into a full-fledged international organization - the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). On October 7, 2002, the Charter and the Agreement on the Legal Status of the CSTO were signed in Chisinau, which were ratified by all CSTO member states and entered into force on September 18, 2003.
On August 16, 2006, a decision was signed in Sochi on the full accession (restoration of membership) of Uzbekistan to the CSTO.
Russia has recently pinned great hopes on this organization, hoping to strengthen its strategic positions in Central Asia with its help. Russia considers this region a zone of its own strategic interests.
At the same time, the US Manas air base is located here on the territory of Kyrgyzstan, and Kyrgyzstan does not intend to do anything to close it. In early 2006, Tajikistan agreed to a significant increase in the French military group located on its territory, operating as part of the coalition forces in Afghanistan.
To strengthen the positions of the CSTO, Russia proposes to reform the collective rapid deployment forces of the Central Asian region. These forces consist of ten battalions: three each from Russia and Tajikistan, two each from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The total number of personnel of the collective forces is about 4 thousand people. The aviation component (10 planes and 14 helicopters) is located at the Russian Kant airbase in Kyrgyzstan.
A proposal is being considered to expand the scope of activities of the collective forces - in particular, their use in Afghanistan is expected.
In connection with Uzbekistan's entry into the CSTO, it is noted that back in 2005, the Uzbek authorities came up with a project to create international "anti-revolutionary" punitive forces in the post-Soviet space within the framework of the CSTO. In preparation for joining this organization, Uzbekistan prepared a package of proposals for its improvement, including the creation of intelligence and counterintelligence structures within its framework, as well as the development of mechanisms that would allow the CSTO to give guarantees of internal security to the Central Asian states.
The organization is headed by its general secretary. Since 2003, this is Nikolai Bordyuzha. As is customary now, he comes from the "organs", Colonel General of the border troops. For the last couple of years before the collapse of the USSR, he worked as the head of the personnel department of the KGB. After 1991, he commanded the border troops, for a short time he was the head of the presidential administration under Boris Yeltsin, and the secretary of the Security Council. In short, an experienced friend.
All members of the G7, with the possible exception of Kazakhstan, are in strong political, economic and military dependence on Moscow and need its diplomatic cover.
- The tasks of the CSTO are directly interconnected with the integration processes in the post-Soviet space, and this relationship is growing stronger. The advancement of military-political integration in the CSTO format contributes to the deployment of integration processes, actually forms an "integration core" in the CIS, and contributes to an optimal "division of labor" in the Commonwealth. As for the place and role of the CSTO in Eurasian Union, if one is formed, then they can be very significant, since the Organization's area of responsibility covers vast expanses of Eurasia, and the Organization's activities are aimed at creating a system of collective security in Europe and Asia, - said Nikolai Bordyuzha, commenting on the goals of creating the CSTO for the press.
On September 5, at a summit in Moscow, the leaders of the member countries of the Collective Security Treaty Organization adopted a declaration in which they condemned Georgia for aggression, supported Russia's actions and advocated "ensuring lasting security for South Ossetia and Abkhazia." The CSTO countries warned NATO against expanding to the East and announced plans to strengthen the military component of the organization.
Like Shanghai Organization cooperation, the CSTO called for Russia's active role in promoting peace and cooperation in the region. However, the main thing - the joint recognition by the members of the Organization of the two Transcaucasian republics - did not happen.
The Russian President reiterated the need to strengthen the military component of the CSTO. Actually, there is nothing unusual in this, because the CSTO - military organization, created to protect member countries from external encroachments. There are also mutual obligations in case of an attack on one of the members of the organization. As Medvedev himself admitted, it was this topic that became the main one during his negotiations with his colleagues.
The main part of the document was devoted to the current situation in the world and the role of the CSTO itself in it. In the very first lines of the declaration, the leaders of the CSTO countries inform the world community that from now on they "are determined to adhere to close coordination of foreign policy interaction, a line towards the progressive development of military and military-technical cooperation, and improvement of the practice of joint work on all issues." At the same time, declaring its firm intention to ensure security in its zone of responsibility, the G7 warned against encroachments on this zone, frankly making it clear how it would cooperate: “Serious conflict potential is accumulating in the immediate vicinity of the CSTO zone of responsibility. CSTO members call on NATO countries to weigh everything possible consequences expansion of the alliance to the East and deployment of new missile defense facilities near the borders of member states”.
