BISHKEK, 27 November (BelTA) - The Collective Security Treaty Organization has its own strength and remains relevant, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin told the media in Bishkek on the sidelines of the CSTO summit, BelTA has learned.
When asked about the occasional criticism that the CSTO is allegedly losing its relevance, the minister said: “That's complete nonsense. This is how we view this criticism. People who say this are short-sighted. The CSTO has its own strength. Kazakhstan, the 2022 events [referring the deployment of the CSTO Collective Peacekeeping Forces in Kazakhstan in January 2022] showed that we can respond quickly to serious challenges, which are primarily designed to break the country apart from within.”
Viktor Khrenin noted that the existing threats did not emerge yesterday but have been accumulating for years. At the same time, regardless of the geographical direction, these threats are largely similar in nature. “Today, through the interaction between the defense ministries, there is a complete mutual understanding of where these threats come from, what to do with them, and what measures need to be taken to neutralize or reduce these threats. This is the very reason we gather here [at summits and joint meetings]. Just yesterday, at the level of defense ministers, we held a number of meetings and events where we agreed on our further plans, including within the CSTO framework,” the defense minister stated.
When asked about the CSTO partners' position regarding the militarization on the organization's western borders, Viktor Khrenin said: “Today the state secretary [Aleksandr Volfovich, State Secretary of the Security Council of Belarus] said that we see the advanced preparations for military action. Our partners, of course, express a certain level of concern. We have a clear understanding and coordination. In this regard, the Union State naturally does more work. This is our fraternal Russia. The regional group of forces. We are undertaking a full set of measures to neutralize and mitigate these threats.”
When asked about the occasional criticism that the CSTO is allegedly losing its relevance, the minister said: “That's complete nonsense. This is how we view this criticism. People who say this are short-sighted. The CSTO has its own strength. Kazakhstan, the 2022 events [referring the deployment of the CSTO Collective Peacekeeping Forces in Kazakhstan in January 2022] showed that we can respond quickly to serious challenges, which are primarily designed to break the country apart from within.”
Viktor Khrenin noted that the existing threats did not emerge yesterday but have been accumulating for years. At the same time, regardless of the geographical direction, these threats are largely similar in nature. “Today, through the interaction between the defense ministries, there is a complete mutual understanding of where these threats come from, what to do with them, and what measures need to be taken to neutralize or reduce these threats. This is the very reason we gather here [at summits and joint meetings]. Just yesterday, at the level of defense ministers, we held a number of meetings and events where we agreed on our further plans, including within the CSTO framework,” the defense minister stated.
When asked about the CSTO partners' position regarding the militarization on the organization's western borders, Viktor Khrenin said: “Today the state secretary [Aleksandr Volfovich, State Secretary of the Security Council of Belarus] said that we see the advanced preparations for military action. Our partners, of course, express a certain level of concern. We have a clear understanding and coordination. In this regard, the Union State naturally does more work. This is our fraternal Russia. The regional group of forces. We are undertaking a full set of measures to neutralize and mitigate these threats.”
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