MOSCOW, 18 May (BelTA) – The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) start a new phase of cooperation, CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas said after his meeting with SCO Secretary General Zhang Ming in Moscow on 18 May, BelTA has learned.
“This meeting will open a new phase of cooperation between our organizations,” said Stanislav Zas.
According to the secretary general, the CSTO is closely following the growth of the SCO's authority in the international arena. In his words, this authority is conditioned by the sound principles laid down when the organization was established. Among these principles Stanislav Zas named adherence to international law, mutual respect of states, the desire to build peace based on the principles of indivisible security. “CSTO adheres to the same principles in its activities. This coincidence provides additional opportunities for enhancing cooperation,” stressed Stanislav Zas.
He called the current meeting an important event because those were only the second negotiations in such a format in the history of the two organizations: the previous meeting of the CSTO and SCO secretaries general took place in 2003. The SCO secretary general said that the next meeting should not take place in 20 years.
Zhang Ming congratulated the CSTO on the success of its recent summit, as well as on the 30th anniversary of the Collective Security Treaty and the 20th anniversary of the organization.
