The expansion of infrastructure and the increase in the number of NATO forces on the eastern borders of the military bloc poses a threat to the entire Collective Security Treaty Organization.

This opinion was expressed by CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas at a conference within the framework of the Valdai International Discussion Club.

“On the western borders of the CSTO zone of responsibility, there is a significant increase in NATO military groups, the development of military infrastructure in adjacent territories ... This not only poses a threat to Belarus and Russia, but also negatively affects the security of our entire organization,” Zas said.

According to him, the basis for such an assertion is the development strategy of the CSTO until 2025.

He also noted that NATO, increasing its military activity, is carrying out the militarization of the entire region.

In this regard, the Secretary General emphasized the importance of Russia's proposals on security guarantees and its negotiations on this topic with the United States and NATO.

“Those initiatives of the Russian Federation and those complex negotiations that it is now conducting with Western partners to reduce tension in the Eastern European region and in the Eurasian space as a whole are in line with the interests of the CSTO,” Zas said.

He also noted that the recent events in Kazakhstan and the prompt response of the CSTO members to them demonstrated the effectiveness of the means and mechanisms created by the organization.

“All the CSTO states have confirmed and demonstrated their unity and readiness to jointly protect the interests and security of our states,” Zas added.

  • CSTO Secretary General Stanislav Zas

  • RIA News

  • © Maxim Bogodvid

Unnegotiable alliance

The Russian Foreign Ministry previously pointed out the difference between NATO and the CSTO.

So, the official representative of the department, Maria Zakharova, in an interview with RT on February 8, indicated that the North Atlantic Alliance is a military organization based on "military strategy".

“The Collective Security Treaty presupposes collective defense.

There are no borders for NATO, they have not delineated their zone of influence exclusively with their own borders, ”Zakharova explained.

The diplomat stressed that no one in the CSTO had the idea to conduct any operations outside the bloc's member states.

In turn, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin noted on the sidelines of the Valdai Club on February 9 that NATO claims a much larger area of ​​responsibility than the CSTO.

“The zone of responsibility is the CSTO's own space, while the zone of responsibility of NATO and NATO allies ... is global, if only because the US zone of responsibility is declared global.

That's the difference," the diplomat said.

At the same time, he stressed that the North Atlantic Alliance does not seek to establish contacts with the CSTO in the field of security.

The deputy foreign minister also called it strange the alliance's refusal to recognize the bloc as a significant player in the field of security, noting that many southern and eastern partners are signaling their readiness to cooperate with the CSTO.

“It’s time, perhaps, for Western partners to also think that this is not a toy, but a real organization - military-political, defensive, multidisciplinary, monitoring what is happening, catching changes,” Pankin expressed his opinion.

He admitted that the West is not fully aware that the members of the CSTO have "a common collective responsibility for their security."

“The threat to each of us is unchanged for a number of reasons: due to open borders, lack of visas and other things ... So a threat to one of us is a threat to everyone else,” he explained.

Recall that in May 1992 the Collective Security Treaty was signed, and in October 2002 an agreement was signed on the creation of the CSTO.

The military bloc includes six states: Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

  • CSTO peacekeeper

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  • © Pavel Pavlov/Anadolu Agency

The responsibility of the organization does not include the prevention of coups d'etat, civil wars and the resolution of territorial or political disputes by military means.

The CSTO has at its disposal the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces and the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces to eliminate a sudden military threat.

There is also a collective peacekeeping force.

Challenged Claims

In recent months, Russia has been promoting the idea of ​​the need for legalization of security guarantees from the US and NATO.

As Vladimir Putin stated on December 21, 2021 at an expanded meeting of the collegium of the Russian Defense Ministry, Moscow can no longer be content with verbal assurances. 

“We are well aware of the value of such verbal assurances, words and promises,” the President of the Russian Federation said.

Therefore, on December 15, the Russian Foreign Ministry handed over to Western partners the draft treaty with the United States and the agreement with NATO.

They talk about mutual security guarantees in Europe and about the refusal of the North Atlantic Alliance from further expansion to the east, including at the expense of Ukraine.

After negotiations between the parties in Geneva and Brussels, as well as consultations between the US and NATO allies, at the end of January they handed over their answers to Moscow in writing.

The content of the documents became known after they were made public by the Spanish newspaper El País, which obtained copies.

Their authenticity was confirmed by US State Department spokesman Ned Price.

According to the documents, NATO allies are ready to discuss only some of the topics proposed by Russia and put forward counter demands to Moscow.

In particular, Washington allowed discussion of the possibility of inspecting missile defense facilities in Romania and Poland if Russia provides similar access to its two land-based missile bases at the choice of the American side.

And NATO demanded that the Russian Federation resume compliance with the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, a moratorium on which Moscow introduced in 2007 due to the unwillingness of Western states to adapt the agreement to new geopolitical realities.

At the same time, as the Russian President noted on February 8 at a press conference following talks with French President Emmanuel Macron, Washington and the alliance in their responses ignored Moscow's central concerns about security guarantees.

“On all the key issues… not just there is no position or even a “no” or “yes” answer, the impression is that we did not even raise these questions, they were simply bypassed.

We see there political clichés and proposals on some minor issues,” Putin said.

At the same time, he stressed that the dialogue would not end there and that Russia would pass on its response to Washington and Brussels.

Building a new security architecture

Analysts interviewed by RT note the validity of Stanislav Zas' statement that NATO today poses a threat to all CSTO countries.

“Given that all countries that are members of the CSTO are bound by obligations to guarantee the security of their members, a threat to one or more members poses a threat to the entire organization and naturally requires an appropriate response from the entire organization,” said Sergey Ermakov, an expert at the RISS Research Coordination Center. .

In this regard, Russia's initiatives on security guarantees, which alone are seeking from the US and NATO, should be seen not as a demand of a particular country, but as an invitation to dialogue on a new security architecture, the analyst believes.

“Russia proposes to consider mechanisms for building a new security architecture in Europe so that it is based on the principles of equality and indivisibility, and the military strengthening of any one state or alliance does not entail a deterioration in the security of its neighbors, as is the case with NATO expansion.

Indeed, in fact, the bloc is increasing its zone of influence, reducing the security of Russia, Belarus and other CSTO countries, ”Ermakov explained.

However, he believes, NATO should not discount the CSTO, as the organization has the potential to protect the interests of its members.

And it was demonstrated in Kazakhstan.

“When the President of the country, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, asked for help, this help was provided, and in the shortest possible time.

And what is significant - as soon as the CSTO peacekeeping contingent completed its task, it immediately left the territory of Kazakhstan, since there was no need for its presence, ”Ermakov recalled.

  • Teachings of the CSTO forces

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  • © MOD Russia

As Andrey Koshkin, a full member of the Academy of Military Sciences of the Russian Federation, noted in an interview with RT, the North Atlantic Alliance ignores the interests of those who are not in its sphere of influence.

In addition, NATO, created during the Cold War as an instrument of confrontation with the USSR, simply cannot change its mind in order to stop perceiving the Russian Federation as an adversary.

“Therefore, NATO does not make contact with the CSTO, as it considers the organization a continuation of Russia.

And if the alliance suddenly starts to cooperate with the bloc, it will lose its essence.

After all, initially the bet was made on the fact that NATO protects everyone in Europe, primarily from the Russian Federation.

And the alliance has nothing more to offer today,” Koshkin said.

In addition, the expert noted, it is very beneficial for NATO to support the myth of the Russian threat, since "under it the main actor - the United States - allocates more funds to Brussels and supplies more weapons and equipment."

Sergei Ermakov agrees with this opinion.

According to him, if NATO compromises with Russia, it will lose not only face, but also the meaning of its existence.

“The functioning of the alliance is based on constant confrontation with any kind of enemy.

And Russia is its existential adversary.

Therefore, the dialogue on guarantees initiated by Moscow is developing so slowly, ”summed up the interlocutor of RT.