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The Russian Federation is not a member of the CSTO. What is the CSTO and why does Russia need it? CSTO: birth traumas and irremovable contradictions

BASIC INFORMATION

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA) is the statutory body of inter-parliamentary cooperation of the CSTO.

On November 24, 2016 and November 5, 2019, the Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the 7th convocation, Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin, was elected Chairman of the CSTO PA.

The working bodies of the CSTO PA are the standing commissions, the Coordination meeting of the chairmen of the committees (commissions) on defense and security of the parliaments of the CSTO member states under the Council of the CSTO PA, the Expert Advisory Council and the Information and Analytical Legal Center.

Functions for organizational, technical and other support for the activities of the Parliamentary Assembly are assigned to the Secretariat, whose activities
is headed by the Executive Secretary of the Parliamentary Assembly.

The official symbol of the CSTO is a flag, which is a rectangular blue panel, in the center of which is the CSTO emblem (a silver-bound blue shield in the form of a quadrangular fortress, along the edge of which there are silver rivets, in the field of the shield there is a golden ball, the shield is framed by a golden laurel-oak wreath).

HISTORY OF CREATION

In 1999, the Council of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly adopted a special decision, according to which parliamentary delegations representing the CIS IPA states - parties to the Collective Security Treaty (CST) began to consider legal issues of the implementation of this treaty within the framework of the CIS IPA. The status of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly as a parliamentary structure of the Collective Security Treaty was consolidated in 2000 at the session of the Collective Security Council of the CST (Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic), when the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly in the CST format was tasked with developing model laws and recommendations for the purpose of unification and harmonization of legislation countries party to the Treaty. On November 23, 2001, at their first meeting, members of the Council of the IPA of the CIS states – participants of the CST adopted the Program of legal support for the Plan of main measures for the formation of a collective security system of the states parties to the Collective Security Treaty for the period 2001–2005. This Program, approved by the chairmen of the Collective Security Council of the CST and the IPA Council of the CIS, became the basis for the work of parliamentarians until 2005 and was successfully implemented.

The main forms of work of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly in the CST format were regular meetings of the members of the IPA Council of the CIS states - participants in the CST and the Standing Commission of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly on Defense and Security Issues in the CST format. Interaction between the administrative bodies of the CIS IPA Council and the CST, the exchange of information between them, and cooperation in the development of draft documents aimed at strengthening the collective security of the CST member states were established. In addition, groups of IPA deputies of the CIS states - participants in the CST - studied the military-political situation in all regions of collective security (in Central Asia - in March 2001, in the Caucasus - in October 2004, in Western - in September 2005).

Taking into account the need to adapt the Treaty to the dynamics of regional and international security and in order to counter new challenges and threats, on May 14, 2002, at the Moscow session of the CST, a decision was made to transform the Treaty into a full-fledged international organization - the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

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 in order to harmonize national legislation, develop model laws for solving the statutory tasks of the CSTO, and organize interaction on issues of international and regional security. Based on this decision of the CSTO Collective Security Council and the Convention on the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the chairmen of the parliaments of the CIS member states of the CSTO at their meeting on November 16, 2006 adopted a resolution on the creation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA) . Boris Vyacheslavovich Gryzlov, Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the fifth convocation, was elected Chairman of the CSTO PA.

Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the fourth and fifth convocations Gryzlov Boris Vyacheslavovich

The Chairman of the CSTO PA was Sergei Evgenievich Naryshkin, Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the VI convocation.

Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the sixth convocation Sergey Evgenievich Naryshkin

On November 24, 2016, Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin, Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the 7th convocation, was elected Chairman of the CSTO PA.

On November 5, 2019, V.V. Volodin was re-elected Chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

Collective Security Council (CSC)- the highest body of the Organization.

The Council considers fundamental issues of the Organization's activities and makes decisions aimed at achieving its goals and objectives, and also ensures coordination and joint activities of member states to achieve these goals.
The Council is composed of heads of member states.
In the period between sessions of the CSC, issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the implementation of decisions taken by the bodies of the Organization are dealt with by the Permanent Council, which consists of authorized representatives appointed by member states.

Council of Foreign Ministers (CMFA)- advisory and executive body of the Organization on issues of coordination of interaction between member states in the field of foreign policy.

Council of Defense Ministers (CMD)- advisory and executive body of the Organization on issues of coordinating interaction between member states in the field of military policy, military development and military-technical cooperation.

Military Committee - created on December 19, 2012 under the Council of Defense Ministers of the Collective Security Treaty Organization for the purpose of promptly considering issues of planning and use of forces and means of the collective security system of the Collective Security Treaty Organization and preparing the necessary proposals to the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils (CSSC)- advisory and executive body of the Organization on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of ensuring their national security.

Secretary General of the Organization is the highest administrative official of the Organization and manages the Secretariat of the Organization. Appointed by decision of the SSC from among the citizens of the member states and accountable to the SSC.

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 Organization’s bodies.

The SKB has the right to create working and auxiliary bodies of the Organization on a permanent or temporary basis.

CSTO Joint Headquarters- a permanent working body of the Organization and the Council of Defense of the CSTO, responsible for preparing proposals and implementing decisions on the military component of the CSTO.

Collective Security Treaty Organizations(reference Information)

1. History of creation, basics of activity, organizational structure

The organization of the Collective Security Treaty originates from the conclusion of the Collective Security Treaty, which was signed in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) on May 15, 1992 by the heads of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Later Azerbaijan, Belarus and Georgia joined it (1993). The Treaty entered into force upon completion of national ratification processes on April 20, 1994. The key article of the Treaty is the fourth, which states that:

“If one of the participating states is subjected to aggression by any state or group of states, this will be considered as aggression against all state parties to this Treaty.

In the event of an act of aggression against any of the participating States, all other participating States will provide him with the necessary assistance, including military assistance, and will also provide support with means at their disposal in the exercise of the right to collective defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter.”

In addition, Article 2 of the Treaty establishes a regional consultation mechanism in the event of a threat to the security, territorial integrity and sovereignty of one or more member states, or a threat to international peace and security, and also provides for the conclusion of additional agreements regulating certain issues of cooperation in the field of collective security between participating states.

The collective security agreement was concluded for five years with the possibility of subsequent extension. In 1999, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia and Tajikistan signed the Protocol on the Extension of the Collective Security Treaty (link), on the basis of which a new composition of participating countries was formed and an automatic procedure for extending the Treaty for five-year periods was established.

Further development of cooperation in the Treaty format required qualitative institutional changes, which led to the signing on October 7, 2002 in Chisinau (Moldova) of the Charter of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, which from the point of view of international law is a regional international security organization.

In accordance with Article 3 of the CSTO Charter, the goals of the Organization are to strengthen peace, international and regional security and stability, and protect on a collective basis the independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of member states.

Based on Article 5 of the CSTO Charter, the Organization is guided in its activities by the following principles: priority of political means over military means, strict respect for independence, voluntary participation, equality of rights and obligations of member states, non-interference in matters falling under the national jurisdiction of member states.

To date, the CSTO format has developed an extensive legal framework regulating the activities of the Organization in all main areas of security. To date, 43 international treaties have been concluded and, for the most part, ratified on the most fundamental issues of interstate interaction in the field of collective security, 173 decisions of the Collective Security Council have been signed on certain areas of cooperation, approval of plans and programs of work on specific problems of collective security, resolution of financial, administrative and personnel issues.

The CSTO bodies, their powers and competence, as well as the order and procedures of interaction are determined by the CSTO Charter and the decisions of the Collective Security Council adopted in its development.

1. The statutory bodies exercise political leadership and make decisions on the main issues of the Organization’s activities.

The Collective Security Council is the highest body of the Organization and consists of the heads of member states. It considers fundamental issues of the Organization's activities and makes decisions aimed at achieving its goals and objectives, and also ensures coordination and joint activities of member states to achieve these goals. The Chairmanship of the Council is transferred in Russian alphabetical order, unless the Council decides otherwise.

The Council of Foreign Ministers is the Organization's advisory and executive body for coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of foreign policy.

The Council of Defense Ministers is the Organization's advisory and executive body on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of military policy, military development and military-technical cooperation.

The Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils is an advisory and executive body of the Organization on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of ensuring their national security and countering modern challenges and threats.

The Parliamentary Assembly is a body of inter-parliamentary cooperation of the Organization, which in various forms considers issues of the CSTO’s activities, the situation in its area of responsibility, the implementation of decisions of the statutory bodies and tasks for their legal support, and discusses the practice of ratifying international treaties concluded within the CSTO.

The CSTO Permanent Council deals with issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the implementation of decisions taken by the CSTO bodies in the period between sessions of the Collective Security Council. It consists of authorized representatives appointed by member states in accordance with their domestic procedures.

2. Permanent working bodies.

The CSTO Secretariat provides organizational, informational, analytical and advisory support for the activities of the Organization’s statutory bodies. It carries out the preparation of draft decisions and other documents of the Organization’s bodies. The Secretariat is formed from among the citizens of the Member States on a quota rotation basis (officials) in proportion to the shared contributions of the Member States to the budget of the Organization and citizens of the Member States hired on a competitive basis under a contract (employees). The location of the Secretariat is Moscow, Russian Federation.

The CSTO Joint Headquarters is responsible for preparing proposals and implementing decisions on the formation of an effective collective security system within the Organization, the creation of coalition (regional) groupings of troops (forces) and their command and control bodies, military infrastructure, the training of military personnel and specialists for the armed forces, and the provision of necessary weapons and military equipment.

3. Auxiliary bodies that can be created on a permanent or temporary basis to solve the problems facing the CSTO:

Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities to Combat Drug Trafficking;

Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities to Combat Illegal Migration;

Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities for Emergency Situations;

Interstate Commission on Military-Economic Cooperation;

Working Group on Afghanistan under the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers;

Working group on information policy and information security under the Committee of Secretaries of the CSTO Security Councils.

Membership:	Armenia Belarus Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Russia Tajikistan
Joint Headquarters:	Moscow
Organization type:	Military-political union

20 years ago, the heads of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and UzbekistanThe Collective Security Treaty was signed.

The Collective Security Treaty was signed on May 15, 1992 in Tashkent (Uzbekistan). Azerbaijan joined it in September 1993, and Georgia and Belarus joined in December of the same year. The treaty came into force for all nine countries in April 1994 for a period of five years.

In accordance with the Treaty, the participating states ensure their security on a collective basis: “in the event of a threat to the security, territorial integrity and sovereignty of one or more participating states, or a threat to international peace and security, the participating states will immediately activate the mechanism of joint consultations in order to coordinate their positions and take measures to eliminate the emerging threat."

At the same time, it is stipulated that “if one of the participating states is subjected to aggression by any state or group of states, this will be considered as aggression against all participating states” and “all other participating states will provide it with the necessary assistance, including military, and will also provide support with the means at their disposal in the exercise of the right to collective defense in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter."

In April 1999, the Protocol on the extension of the Collective Security Treaty was signed by six countries (except Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan). On May 14, 2002, the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was established, currently uniting Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

On October 7, 2002, the CSTO Charter was adopted in Chisinau, according to which the main goals of the Organization 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, the priority in achieving which the member states give political means.

The Secretary General of the Organization is the highest administrative official of the Organization and manages the Secretariat of the Organization. Appointed by decision of the SSC from among the citizens of the member states and accountable to the SSC.

The advisory and executive bodies of the CSTO are: the Council of Foreign Ministers (CMFA), which coordinates the foreign policy activities of the CSTO member states; the Council of Defense Ministers (CMD), which ensures interaction between member states in the field of military policy, military development and military-technical cooperation; The Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils (CSSC), which oversees issues of ensuring national security.

In the period between sessions of the CSC, coordination in the implementation of decisions of the CSTO bodies is entrusted to the Permanent Council of the Organization, which consists of authorized representatives of the member states. The CSTO Secretary General also participates in its meetings.

The permanent working bodies of the CSTO are the Secretariat and the Joint Headquarters of the Organization.

The CSTO carries out its activities in cooperation with various international organizations. Since December 2, 2004, the Organization has 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. Productive contacts are maintained with international organizations and structures, including the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, the OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe), the European Union, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the International Organization for Migration and others. The CSTO has established close cooperation with the EurAsEC (Eurasian Economic Community), SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) and the CIS.

In order to counter the entire range of challenges and threats to the security of member states, decisions were made by the CSTO Special Security Council on the creation of Peacekeeping Forces, coordination councils for emergency situations, and the fight against illegal migration and illegal drug trafficking. There is a Working Group on Afghanistan under the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers. The CSTO CSTO has working groups on issues of combating terrorism and combating illegal migration, information policy and security.

As part of military cooperation in the CSTO format, the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces of the Central Asian Collective Security Region (CRDF CAR) have been formed. Exercises of the CAR CRRF are conducted on a regular basis, including training in anti-terrorism tasks.

In February 2009, a decision was made to create the Collective Rapid Reaction Force (CRRF) of the CSTO. Uzbekistan refrained from signing the package of documents, reserving the possibility of joining the Agreement later. Joint comprehensive exercises are regularly held with the participation of contingents and operational groups of the CSTO member states.

Under the auspices of the CSTO, the international comprehensive anti-drug operation “Channel” and the operation to combat illegal migration “Illegal” are carried out annually. In 2009, joint activities were carried out for the first time to combat crimes in the information sphere under the code name Operation PROXY (Combating Crime in the Information Sphere).

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources

Russia today plays a special role in the context of the strategy and activities of the CSTO, and intensifying cooperation between member countries and increasing the efficiency of the Organization’s activities today is one of the important foreign policy priorities for Russia. Thus, according to the National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation until 2020, the CSTO is the main interstate instrument designed to counter regional challenges and threats of a military-political and military-strategic nature. The military doctrine of the Russian Federation formulates a number of main tasks for containing and preventing conflicts, which include, among other things, tasks for strengthening the collective security system within the CSTO and increasing its potential. In 2014, during its chairmanship of the CSTO, Russia made serious efforts to increase the role and potential of the Organization, as well as to develop military and military-political cooperation with partners.

Today, the CSTO member countries will continue to promote the consolidation of efforts in the fight against international terrorism and consider peacekeeping activities to be a promising direction for the development of the organization, which is fully consistent with the main priorities of Russian foreign policy. The final statement of the heads of CSTO member states following the summit in Dushanbe on September 15, 2015 states that “the CSTO member states consider the development of the organization’s peacekeeping potential as a promising direction for its activities and support involvement in international peacekeeping activities under the auspices of the UN.” The joint statement also notes that the CSTO member states will continue to promote the consolidation of the efforts of the world community in the fight against international terrorism and extremism, drug trafficking and illegal migration, and ensuring international information security.

History of creation, basics of activity, organizational structure

The organization of the Collective Security Treaty dates back to the conclusion of the Collective Security Treaty, which was signed in Tashkent (Uzbekistan) on May 15, 1992 by the heads of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Later Azerbaijan, Belarus and Georgia joined it (1993). The Treaty entered into force upon completion of national ratification processes on April 20, 1994. The key article of the Treaty is the fourth, which states that:

“If one of the participating states is subjected to aggression by any state or group of states, this will be considered as aggression against all state parties to this Treaty.

Since 2004, the organization has observer status at the UN General Assembly.

CSTO structure

The highest coordinating body of the CSTO is the secretariat headed by the Secretary General (since April 2003 - Nikolai Bordyuzha). The highest political body is the Collective Security Council (CSC), which includes the presidents of the states parties to the Treaty. In the period between sessions of the CSC, it is headed by the president of the country presiding over the CSTO this year. In 2014, the chairmanship of the CSTO statutory bodies is carried out by Russia, in 2015 - by Tajikistan.

The Collective Security Council (CSC) is the highest body of the Organization. The Council considers fundamental issues of the Organization's activities and makes decisions aimed at achieving its goals and objectives, and also ensures coordination and joint activities of member states to achieve these goals.

The Council is composed of heads of member states.

In the period between sessions of the CSC, issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the implementation of decisions taken by the bodies of the Organization are dealt with by the Permanent Council, which consists of authorized representatives appointed by member states.

The Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs (CMFA) is the Organization's advisory and executive body on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of foreign policy.

The Council of Defense Ministers (CMD) is the Organization's advisory and executive body on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of military policy, military development and military-technical cooperation.

The Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils (CSSC) is an advisory and executive body of the Organization on issues of coordinating the interaction of member states in the field of ensuring their national security.

The Secretariat of the Organization is 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.

The SKB has the right to create working and auxiliary bodies of the Organization on a permanent or temporary basis.

The CSTO Joint Headquarters is a permanent working body of the Organization and the CSTO Council of Defense, responsible for preparing proposals and implementing decisions on the military component of the CSTO.

Political cooperation

In accordance with Article 9 of the CSTO Charter, a mechanism of regular political consultations operates in the Organization’s format, during which assessments of the situation in the CSTO area of responsibility are discussed, common positions are developed and joint approaches to current problems on the international agenda are sought, and collective statements are agreed upon. Meetings are held at the levels of foreign ministers, their deputies, members of the Permanent Council under the CSTO, as well as experts. Particular attention is paid to coordinating the collective steps of member states in international organizations, for which periodic meetings of authorized representatives of the CSTO member states at the UN, OSCE, NATO, EU and other international structures are convened, which makes it possible to more effectively, on a collective basis, coordinately defend common interests in these international structures. Informal meetings of foreign ministers have become a practice on the eve of OSCE Ministerial Council meetings and sessions of the UN General Assembly. Positive experience has emerged as a result of the use of collective instructions to authorized representatives of member states at international organizations.

Cooperation with other international organizations at the working level is developing. Memorandums (protocols) on cooperation were signed with the UN, SCO, CIS, EAEU, Union State, Colombo Plan, SCO Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure, Anti-Terrorism Center and the Coordination Service of the Council of Commanders of the CIS Border Troops.

Representatives of the Secretariat regularly take part in the work of relevant units of the UN and OSCE. The CSTO Secretary General regularly presents the Organization's approaches to certain current issues on the international agenda during events held under the auspices of the UN, OSCE and other associations. In turn, evidence of the serious focus of these organizations on developing cooperation with the CSTO were the speeches of their secretaries general, Ban Ki-moon, Lamberto Zannier at meetings of the Permanent Council of the CSTO.

On December 2, 2004, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution granting the Collective Security Treaty Organization observer status in the UN General Assembly. On March 18, 2010, in Moscow, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and CSTO Secretary-General N.N. Bordyuzha signed a Joint Declaration on cooperation between the secretariats of the UN and the CSTO.

A mechanism has been established for the exchange of views on a wide range of issues of mutual interest between senior administrative officials of the EAEU, CSTO, CIS and SCO, which allows, at a practical level, to optimize the distribution of functions between regional organizations whose responsibilities include ensuring security in the Eurasian states.

In 2010, measures were taken to improve the Organization's crisis response system. It is complemented by a political mechanism for monitoring and preventing possible conflicts. An algorithm has been developed and tested for the functioning of the CSTO bodies and member states for the prompt provision of material, technical and humanitarian assistance, information and political support in the event of crisis situations in the area of the Collective Security Treaty. Obligations for mutual, including military, support also extend to cases of armed attack by illegal armed groups and gangs. The possibility of making decisions in a limited format by interested member states is being introduced. A legal basis has been created for emergency consultations and decision-making, including through video conferencing.

Military construction

Despite the importance and priority of collective political action to solve the problems facing the Organization, the specificity of the CSTO is the presence of a capable force potential, ready to respond to a wide range of traditional and modern challenges and threats in the Eurasian region.

At the moment, the military (security) component of the Organization includes the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces and Peacekeeping Forces formed on a broad coalition basis, as well as regional groupings of forces and means of collective security: Collective Rapid Deployment Forces of the Central Asian Region, Regional Russian-Belarusian Grouping of Troops (Forces) Eastern European region, United Russian-Armenian grouping of troops (forces) of the Caucasus region. The United Air Defense System of Russia and Belarus is in operation, and a Russian-Armenian regional air defense system is being created.

The CSTO CRRF (more than 20 thousand personnel) is a component of constant readiness and includes highly mobile contingents of the armed forces of member states, as well as the formation of special forces, which unite units of security agencies and special services, internal affairs bodies and internal troops, emergency response agencies . In December 2011, the heads of member states decided to include special units of anti-drug departments in the CRRF.

Collective rapid response forces are a universal potential capable of solving problems of resolving conflicts of varying intensity, conducting special operations to suppress terrorist attacks, violent extremist actions, manifestations of organized crime, as well as preventing and eliminating emergency situations.

In accordance with the Agreement on Peacekeeping Activities, the CSTO Peacekeeping Forces (about 3.6 thousand personnel) were created. On a planned basis, they are trained and prepared to solve specific peacekeeping tasks. In 2010, the heads of member states expressed their readiness, using the peacekeeping potential of the CSTO to assist the United Nations, to contribute to the prevention of armed conflicts and the peaceful resolution of emerging conflict and crisis situations.

Contingents of regional groupings, as well as the CSTO CRRF forces, are scheduled to carry out joint combat training. Exercises and other preparatory activities are regularly conducted. An interstate target program has been approved to equip the CSTO CRRF with modern, interoperably compatible weapons and equipment. The Russian Federation plans to allocate significant financial resources for these purposes.

Steps are being taken to create integrated military systems: integrated air defense systems in Central Asia and other regions, a system for managing forces and means of collective security, an information and intelligence system, and a technical cover system for railways.

The organization, along with the implementation of its statutory goals at the regional level, solves problems of promoting the development of the national potentials of its member states.

In accordance with the Agreement on the Basic Principles of Military-Technical Cooperation concluded by the member states, the supply of weapons and military equipment to the CSTO allies at preferential prices (as for their own needs) has been organized. The agreement played an important role in the fact that over the 10 years of its practical implementation, supplies of military products in the CSTO format increased almost tenfold, turning from a political factor into a full-fledged economic factor, into a serious basis for the formation of a common arms market for the CSTO. The implemented approaches brought benefits to the CSTO member states amounting to hundreds of millions of US dollars, and a significant part of the supplies began to consist of modern and sophisticated weapons and military equipment.

Military-technical cooperation is complemented by the mechanism of military-economic cooperation, which involves the implementation of joint R&D programs in the CSTO format, modernization of weapons and military equipment - with appropriate financial support for these activities. The main instruments of interaction in this area are the Interstate Commission on Military-Economic Cooperation and the Business Council under the MKFEC, within the framework of which issues of preserving the specialization of the defense industry industries of the member states are being resolved, proposals are being worked out on the creation of joint ventures for the development, production, disposal and repair of equipment and weapons .

An integral element of cooperation is joint training of personnel for the armed forces, law enforcement agencies and special services of member states. Every year, on a free or preferential basis, in accordance with the existing agreements in the CSTO, only in the Russian Federation are enrolled: in military universities - up to a thousand citizens of member states, in law enforcement and civilian universities - up to 100 people. Several dozen relevant educational institutions are currently involved in the training of security specialists.

Countering modern challenges and threats

After the decision was made in 2006 to give the CSTO a multifunctional character, the Organization has been increasing its contribution to countering regional challenges and threats. To coordinate national activities, the necessary coordination mechanisms have been created and are functioning successfully. The main goal of the CSTO is to achieve practical interaction between the relevant services, to ensure the possibility of everyday cooperation of ordinary employees, and to obtain real returns from the efforts made. To this end, collective special operational and preventive operations are regularly carried out under the auspices of the CSTO.

An important practical area of the Organization’s efforts is combating drug trafficking. Under the auspices of the Organization, the Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities for Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking is conducting a permanent regional anti-drug operation “Channel”, the purpose of which is to identify and block drug smuggling routes, suppress the activities of clandestine laboratories, prevent the diversion of precursors into illegal trafficking, and undermine the economic foundations of the drug business. . The operation involves employees of drug control agencies, internal affairs (police), border guards, customs, state (national) security and financial intelligence services of member states of the Organization. Representatives of about 30 states that are not members of the CSTO, including the United States, European Union countries, a number of Latin American states, as well as experts from international organizations: OSCE, Interpol and Europol, are taking part in the operation as observers.

In total, during the “Channel” operations, about 245 tons of drugs were seized from illicit trafficking, including more than 12 tons of heroin, about 5 tons of cocaine, 42 tons of hashish, as well as over 9,300 firearms and about 300 thousand pieces of ammunition.

In February 2011, the heads of the CSTO member states adopted a Statement on the problem of the drug threat emanating from Afghanistan. Work continues in the UN Security Council to promote the initiative to give Afghan drug production the status of a threat to peace and security.

Under the leadership of the Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities to Combat Illegal Migration, coordinated operational and preventive measures and special operations are being carried out to combat illegal migration, which involve joint efforts to block the channels of illegal migration of third-country citizens and suppress the criminal activities of traffickers and organized groups "Illegal" .

Joint efforts are being made in the field of ensuring international information security. Interaction between special units of security agencies and internal affairs agencies is actively developing in order to suppress crimes in the field of modern information technologies within the framework of Operation Proxy.

By decision of the President of the Russian Federation, a Center for Modern Information Technologies was created on the basis of Moscow State University, where training of specialists in the field of information security is organized. The last batch of 19 students - representatives of member states - completed their training at the Center on December 14, 2012.

Information work and interparliamentary cooperation

Inter-parliamentary cooperation plays an important role in the activities of the Organization. Since 2006, the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly has been in operation (link), which, in fact, is the second supporting structure after the instruments of the executive branch, ensuring stability in the activities of the CSTO.

The CSTO PA is an important means of political cooperation of the CSTO. The flexibility of parliamentary work allows, when necessary, to show greater efficiency and openness when responding to current events in international life, when establishing contacts with our partners in the West. Traditionally, in order to analyze the military-political situation in collective security regions, visiting meetings of the standing commissions of the Parliamentary Assembly are held with a subsequent report to the PA Council.

The CSTO Parliamentary Assembly also plays a significant role in ensuring common approaches to the harmonization of legislation, working to bring together the legal fields of member states, primarily on issues of the main activities of the Organization, namely: drug trafficking, illegal migration, the fight against terrorism and organized crime.

The CSTO carries out intensive information and analytical work, actively interacts with the media, journalistic organizations and press services of the authorities of member states in order to complement efforts in the field of information cooperation, countering the propaganda of violence, the ideology of racism and xenophobia. The CSTO print organ is published, which is the periodic information and analytical magazine “Allies”. MTRK "Mir" organizes a weekly television program of the same name. Radio Russia broadcasts a monthly program “International Politics - CSTO”.

Experts from the CSTO Institute conduct fundamental and applied research on a wide range of issues related to the Organization. The CSTO Scientific Expert Council operates, within the framework of which, with the involvement of experts from leading scientific centers of the member states, current problems of forming a collective security system in modern geopolitical conditions are considered.

Russian Chairmanship of the CSTO, 2014

Russia's chairmanship in the CSTO was based on those approved by the Chairman of the CSTO Collective Security Council, President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin’s priorities and action plan for the implementation of the decisions of the September (2013) session of the CSTO Collective Security Council in Sochi.

In order to strengthen the mechanisms of cooperation and ensure security on the external borders of the CSTO zone of responsibility, the main attention was paid to taking preventive measures to counter the challenges and threats emanating from the territory of Afghanistan. A temporary working group has been created from representatives of the border departments of the CSTO member states to coordinate work to strengthen border security in Central Asia. The working group on Afghanistan under the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers carried out regular “compare notes” on the development of the situation; representatives of a number of international organizations took part in its work.

The improvement of joint operational and combat training of forces and means of the collective security system continued. A decision was made to create the CSTO Collective Aviation Forces. In 2014, three major joint exercises were held: “Frontier - 2014”, “Indestructible Brotherhood - 2014” and “Interaction-2014”. A significant impetus for closer security cooperation was given by the informal summit of the heads of member states in Moscow on May 8, 2014.

Comprehensive work was carried out to develop the peacekeeping component of the Organization’s activities. Recommendations regarding the composition, structure, equipment, and training of CSTO peacekeeping contingents with a view to connecting them to peacekeeping operations under the auspices of the UN were worked out with the Department of Peacekeeping Operations of the UN Secretariat.

Being a multidisciplinary international organization, the CSTO strengthened mechanisms for combating modern challenges and security threats, primarily in such areas as combating drug trafficking, illegal migration, and crimes in the information sphere. The CSTO Anti-Drug Strategy for 2015-20 was adopted, the anti-drug operation “Channel” and a set of special measures to counter illegal migration “Illegal” were carried out on a regular basis. The status of a permanent operation has been given to Operation PROXY to combat crimes in the field of information technology. The Organization's potential to combat emergency situations is being progressively strengthened. The fight against terrorism and organized crime remains among the important areas of work.

The parliamentary dimension of the CSTO's activities has received further development, primarily in terms of synchronization of the national legislations of the member states. On November 6, 2014, V.V. Putin received the heads of parliaments of the CSTO member states, as well as observer countries to the CSTO PA - Serbia and Afghanistan

Foreign policy coordination of member states is becoming the most important area of work of the CSTO. Working meetings of foreign ministers on the sidelines of major international events have become regular, and the practice of adopting joint statements on issues relevant to the CSTO member states has been continued and expanded. During Russia's chairmanship of the CSTO, 17 joint statements were adopted, 6 of which were made by the CSTO Foreign Ministers.

In order to develop interaction between the CSTO and other international and regional organizations, meetings were held between the CSTO Secretary General and the Chairman of the CSTO Permanent Council with the UN Secretary General and his deputies, and meetings were held twice with the OSCE Secretary General. At the 69th session of the UN General Assembly, a Resolution on cooperation between the UN and the CSTO was adopted.

The CSTO's external relations with other international organizations, primarily the CIS and SCO, expanded. With the support of the Russian chairmanship, meetings of the CSTO Secretary General with Latin American states and Asia-Pacific countries were organized.

In general, Russia's chairmanship in the CSTO contributed to increasing the role and potential of the Organization, as well as the development of allied relations with partners. In 2015, Tajikistan became the chairman of the CSTO.

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 agreement 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 to extend the treaty for the next five-year period, but Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan refused to extend the treaty, and in the same year Uzbekistan joined GUUAM.

At the Moscow session of the CST on May 14, 2002, a decision was made to transform the CST into a full-fledged international organization - the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). On October 7, 2002, the Charter and 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 with its help to strengthen its strategic positions in Central Asia. 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. Tajikistan at the beginning of 2006 agreed to a significant build-up of the French military group located on its territory, operating as part of coalition forces in Afghanistan.

To strengthen the position of the CSTO, Russia proposes to reform the collective forces for rapid deployment 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 aircraft and 14 helicopters) is located at the Russian Kant airbase in Kyrgyzstan.

A proposal to expand the scope of activities of collective forces is being considered - in particular, it is planned to use them in Afghanistan.

In connection with Uzbekistan’s accession to 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 CSTO. In preparation for joining this organization, Uzbekistan has prepared a package of proposals for its improvement, including the creation within its framework of intelligence and counterintelligence structures, as well as the development of mechanisms that would allow the CSTO to provide internal security guarantees to the Central Asian states.

The organization is headed by its Secretary General. Since 2003, this has been Nikolai Bordyuzha. As is usual now, he comes from the “authorities”, a colonel general of the border troops. For the last couple of years before the collapse of the USSR, he worked as head of the KGB personnel department. After 1991, he commanded the border troops, and for a short time was the head of the presidential administration under Boris Yeltsin, and secretary of the Security Council. In short, an experienced comrade.

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 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 the “integration core” in the CIS, and contributes to the optimal “division of labor” in the Commonwealth. As for the place and role of the CSTO in the Eurasian Union, if one is formed, they can be very significant, since the Organization’s area of responsibility covers vast spaces 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 “for 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 the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the CSTO spoke in favor of Russia's active role in promoting peace and cooperation in the region. However, the main thing - joint recognition of the two Transcaucasian republics by members of the Organization - did not happen.

The Russian President once again stated the need to strengthen the military component of the CSTO. Actually, there is nothing unusual about this, because the CSTO is a military organization created to protect member countries from external attacks. There are also mutual obligations in the event of an attack on one of the organization’s members. As Medvedev himself admitted, this was the main topic 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, the line of progressive development of military and military-technical cooperation, and improvement of the practice of working together on all issues.” At the same time, declaring their firm intention to ensure security in the area of their responsibility, the G7 warned against encroachments on this area, frankly making it clear how it would cooperate: “Serious conflict potential is accumulating in the immediate vicinity of the CSTO area of responsibility. CSTO members call on NATO countries to weigh all the possible consequences of the alliance’s expansion to the East and the deployment of new missile defense facilities near the borders of member states.”

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