MOSCOW, 17 March (BelTA) - The migration situation in the members states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization is stable and under control, CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas said as he met with IOM Moscow Chief of Mission Abdusattor Esoev, CSTO spokesman Vladimir Zainetdinov told BelTA.
Stanislav Zas informed the IOM official about the migration situation in the CSTO area of responsibility and about the measures taken by the organization to combat illegal migration. He urged the need to build up the efforts of the entire international community in the interests of global migration security.
The CSTO head highlighted the importance of developing cooperation in countering illegal migration with interested international organizations, in particular with the IOM. He said that the CSTO member states ratified the provisions on the observer and partner status which regulate the procedure for obtaining these statuses by a state or an international organization.
Stanislav Zas informed the IOM about the results of the international operation Nelegal conducted annually since 2008. "During the 25 active stages of this operation the law enforcement agencies detected more than 1.5 million violations of the migration legislation, opened more than 13,000 criminal cases on charges of organizing illegal migration and 562 criminal human trafficking cases. About $90 million worth of fines have been imposed," Stanislav Zas said.
He said that the analysis of the information sent to the CSTO Secretariat from the law enforcement agencies of the CSTO member states shows that the migration situation in the CSTO is stable and manageable. “Yet, it should be noted that the CSTO is a crossing point for migration flows from countries with unstable domestic political situation and difficult economic situation in Southeast Asia, the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East, which mostly pass through the Central Asian states to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. Because of their geographical location, they are transit countries for illegal migrants who see the European Union as the point of their final destination," Stanislav Zas noted .
Stanislav Zas added that the development of a collective system against illegal migration in the CSTO is regularly considered at the sessions of the Collective Security Council and at the meetings of the CSTO statutory bodies.
