CSTO leaders met in Yerevan

CSTO leaders met in Yerevan on November 23. Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of Armenia, Aleksandr Lukashenko, President of Belarus, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, Sadyr Japarov, President of Kyrgyzstan, and Emomali Rahmon, President of Tajikistan, arrived in the Armenian capital for the meeting.
Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of Armenia and the host of the summit, spoke at the open part of the meeting and said that Imangali Tasmagambetov, representative of Kazakhstan, will serve as the CSTO Secretary General in 2023.
The CSTO presidency in 2022–2023 will pass from Armenia to the Republic of Belarus. During the meeting, Aleksandr Lukashenko named the priority areas of activity and called on the Organization’s members for maximum mutual support.
Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, stressed that in 2022 the joint work within the Organization has become considerably more dynamic. Participants are effectively cooperating through joint mechanisms through the Foreign and Defence Ministries, Security Councils and Parliaments.
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kazakhstan, at the summit in Armenia expressed the hope that Russia’s peacekeeping efforts would resolve the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict.
Sadyr Japarov, Kyrgyz leader, called for stronger anti-terrorist work. He noted the particular importance of cooperation “for a timely response to the changing situation.”
The Tajik leader drew attention of the participants of the CSTO anniversary summit to possible threats to territorial security.
It was also declared that Denis Manturov, Russian deputy Prime Minister, has been appointed Chairman of the CSTO inter-state commission for military and technical cooperation.
According to the Kremlin website, at the end of the summit the CSTO leaders signed a number of documents.