Events

MINSK, 30 November (BelTA) – There is smooth interaction in foreign policy between all the CSTO member states, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei told the media on 30 November, BelTA informs.

Summing up the interim results of Belarus’ CSTO presidency, Vladimir Makei pointed to very smooth interaction in foreign affairs between all the CSTO member states. “We have made much headway in this regard,” he added.

Great progress has been made in other fields named as top priorities of Belarus’ CSTO presidency. This refers, in particular, to stepping up the effort to counter present-day threats: terrorism, cybercrime, and drug trafficking. The minister drew attention to the fact that the CSTO has drafted a single list of terrorist organizations. He regretted that today some countries and organizations classify terrorists as “good” or “bad” and call to cooperate with the good ones to fight the bad ones. “There are no good or bad [terrorists]. There is a terrorist threat that should be dealt with. I believe that we have advanced in this field but there is still much to be done. Unlike other regional international organizations, all the CSTO member states are absolutely convinced that close cooperation is necessary to fight these new challenges and threats,” Vladimir Makei noted.

A number of measures to counter economic challenges and threats were taken during Belarus’ CSTO presidency. The interaction in this field will continue.

The Belarusian minister of foreign affairs remarked that back in the day Belarus stressed the importance of strengthening the military dimension in the CSTO. The country came up with specific related initiatives. Vladimir Makei added that the CSTO heads of state are expected to adopt several confidential documents to strengthen the military dimension and cooperation in the organization.

Vladimir Makei recalled that in due time there were discussions about making every effort to settle the conflicts in the area of the CSTO responsibility. “Unfortunately, we have not managed to solve these problems completely. I believe, however, that Belarus has made a certain contribution to this process during the CSTO presidency,” the minister emphasized.

“Every presidency contributes a lot to strengthening our organization. We believe that in the future the CSTO will become an actor to be reckoned with on the international arena,” Vladimir Makei said. The countries should deal together with common numerous challenges and threats, without dividing into areas of responsibility, the minister summarized.