(International Observation) The heads of the six countries gathered in Moscow to focus on "three major events"

　　China News Agency, Moscow, May 17th: Heads of the six countries gathered in Moscow to focus on "three major events"

　　China News Agency reporter Zhang Shuo Tian Bing

　　On the 16th local time, a summit of leaders of the member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was held in Moscow, the capital of Russia.

In the context of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the promotion of NATO's "northern expansion", the timing and issues of this summit have attracted attention from all walks of life.

'Calm' response to NATO's new expansion

　　After the governments of Finland and Sweden announced their decision to apply for NATO membership, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a summit on the 16th that there was "no problem" between Russia and Finland and Sweden, and that the two countries would not pose a "direct threat" to Russia even if they joined NATO.

But he also emphasized that if NATO expands military infrastructure to the territories of the two countries, it will inevitably cause a reaction from Russia.

How to respond depends on an assessment of the threat posed by Russia.

　　Putin said that the endless expansion of NATO is entirely an artificial problem for the benefit of the United States.

NATO has effectively become a tool of a country's foreign policy, exacerbating an already difficult international security environment.

He also reminded that the United States should pay attention to the military biological activities of the United States in "post-Soviet space" including Ukraine.

　　Putin also pointed out that in addition to its endless expansion policy, NATO is also going beyond its geographic scope in the Euro-Atlantic region, trying to more actively intervene in international affairs, control the security situation in other parts of the world and exert influence on it.

　　In addition, Putin also said that neo-Nazism is rampant in Ukraine, and some Western "partners" are turning a blind eye, which means that they encourage the activities of neo-Nazis.

Accompanying this is an unprecedented "anti-Russian wave" in the so-called politically correct Western civilization countries.

　　Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko called on CSTO member states to unite and respond to NATO expansion.

Reaffirmed willingness to cooperate pragmatically with NATO

　　This summit is the first offline meeting between leaders of CSTO member states since the outbreak of the new crown epidemic.

The heads of the 6 member states of the organization - Russian President Vladimir Putin, Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan, Belarusian President Lukashenko, Kazakhstan President Tokayev, Kyrgyz President Zaparov and Tajikistan President Rahmon attended summit.

　　During the meeting, leaders of member states focused on key issues such as mutual cooperation under the framework of the CSTO, international and regional hotspots, and measures to further improve the collective security system.

　　In a joint statement issued after the meeting, the member states expressed concern over the adoption of "double standards" in international affairs, disregard for the sovereign interests of other countries, gross interference in other countries' internal affairs, and the use of unilateral sanctions and restrictions.

Condemn any attempt to falsify historical events related to common resistance against Nazi aggression, and oppose any attempt to glorify Nazism and spread neo-Nazism and racism.

　　The joint statement pointed out that the CSTO has the responsibility to ensure lasting peace in the Eurasian region, believes that it is essential to ease tensions in the region, and reiterated its willingness to establish practical cooperation with NATO.

The statement emphasized that it will adhere to safeguarding the security, sovereignty and territorial integrity of member states, commit to consolidating global and regional security, and resolve international issues fairly in accordance with the norms and principles recognized by international law.

The statement said that it is willing to deepen cooperation with the United Nations and other international and regional organizations and relevant countries.

　　The joint statement did not directly address the situation in Ukraine.

Zass, secretary-general of the CSTO, said at a press conference held after the summit that Putin briefed the leaders of the meeting in detail on the progress of Russia's military operations in Ukraine at the closed-door meeting, but the parties did not mention or discuss the issue. The question of whether NGO was involved in the operation.

Secure organizational area boundaries

　　The summit coincides with the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Collective Security Treaty and the 20th anniversary of the official establishment of the CSTO.

　　The predecessor of CSTO was the CIS Collective Security Treaty.

On May 15, 1992, the heads of the Commonwealth of Independent States signed the Collective Security Treaty.

On May 14, 2002, the CIS Collective Security Treaty Council meeting passed a resolution to change the "CIS Collective Security Treaty" to "CIS Collective Security Treaty Organization".

　　Leaders of member states pointed out in the meeting that over the past 30 years, the CSTO has established an effective mechanism for multilateral cooperation and played an important role in maintaining regional peace and stability.

The member states cooperate in all aspects of political interaction, military cooperation and joint response to challenges.

Leaders of various countries reviewed the existing problems within the organization, improved measures, and determined the direction of cooperation and development within the organization to deal with potential threats.

　　But they also noticed that the goal of the United States and the West is to restore a unipolar world, and the "aggressive intentions" of some countries and military and political groups are obvious, which has become a serious challenge for the CSTO - NATO's military presence in Europe is expanding , military infrastructure is being deployed, combat training activities are increasing, and NATO's military spending on this continues to climb.

Not only that, the situation on Afghanistan and other external borders of CSTO member states is worrisome, with the high incidence of international terrorism and extremism there, increasing drug and arms trafficking, and illegal immigration.

　　To this end, the CSTO will ensure the security of regional borders, strengthen the CSTO peacekeeping force, and optimize the crisis response mechanism.

At the same time, in order to improve the coordinated combat capability and overall peacekeeping potential of member states, the CSTO will hold a series of joint military exercises in the autumn of 2022.

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