Prestige of CSTO is growing

The authority of the Collective Security Treaty Organization is growing, Chairman of the Standing Committee on International Affairs and National Security of the Council of the Republic Sergei Rachkov told reporters on the sidelines of the CSTO PA meeting in Minsk on 18 May, BelTA has learned.

“Suffice it to say that we monitor elections not only in the CSTO member states. Last year we traveled to Serbia at the invitation of the country's central election commission and the parliament to monitor the presidential and parliamentary elections. In other words, we go beyond the geographical contours of our organization. This shows that the authority of our structure is growing, we are trusted and invited to countries that are not part of the CSTO,” Sergei Rachkov said.

The meeting of the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly touched upon changes to the regulation on the participation of the CSTO PA in international observation of elections and referendums. Meanwhile, another important area of work of the CSTO PA is monitoring military exercises carried out by the CSTO, Sergei Rachkov added.

Citing the president of Belarus, the parliamentarian noted that it is necessary to strengthen not only the military component, but also the political component in the CSTO, and this can be done through consultations, various monitoring groups, the coordination of positions. This will help strengthen the organization from inside, build up its capacity to ensure the defense and security of countries.