... a constant effort to maintain stability within its traditional sphere of influence. Central Asia appears to be no less decisive than Belarus or Nagorno-Karabakh in this... ... while the beginning of the new century started with the US military intervention in Afghanistan. Later on, new ethnic tensions mounted in the Fergana Valley, two revolutions... ... exercises, supplies of modern weapons and equipment of military bases. However, the CSTO has been criticized throughout the years for having missed some opportunities of...
...
Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai
ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization
summit in Ufa, Russia, Friday, July 10, 2015
First, in order to counter threats of terrorism, illegal migration, narco-trafficking and illicit arms trade posed by Afghanistan to the fragile Central Asian states’ stability, the CSTO, which boasts a Collective Rapid Reaction Force (CRRF) and is conducting the
Kanal
and
Nelegal
operations, is in a position to both negotiate and act to resolve regional matters.
At their meeting in Dushanbe last April 2, CSTO foreign ministers ...
... on these issues, the CSTO is not likely to discuss them in other formats and on other international platforms.
No matter how powerful the organization is, Tashkent's withdrawal has aggravated the regional security environment, including its role in Afghanistan. It is hard for me to imagine a CRRF security umbrella in Central Asia without the participation of such a significant country as Uzbekistan. The question is still open, although one point is crystal clear. The CSTO is resilient enough to resist any sort of attempts to shut it down. It has evolved and grown stronger despite certain differences between its members. A lot hinges on Russia's ability to go ahead and lead the process. Sooner or later, the Eurasian ...
