Representatives of the CSTO PA Secretariat Took Part in a Conference on Afghanistan

On October 26, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences hosted an international scientific and practical conference "The Internal Political Situation in Afghanistan and its Impact on the Regional Security." Representatives of the Secretariat of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Secretariat of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the Russian Foreign Ministry, as well as scientists from specialized research centres in Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and other countries attended the conference.

Imangali Tasmagambetov, CSTO Secretary General, addressed the conference with a welcoming speech. In his speech, he stressed the relevance of dialogue in light of the serious challenges faced by Afghanistan and the entire region.

"I'm convinced that constructive discussion aimed at fulfilling specific practical regional security tasks is exactly what we need to better understand the underlying processes taking place in Afghanistan, predict changes in the situation in the country and the region, and develop balanced approaches to solving the accumulated problems," said Imangali Tasmagambetov.

Vyacheslav Kocharyan, Advisor to the CSTO PA Secretariat, in his speech reviewed the military and political realities in Afghanistan in 2021-2025, and outlined a range of scenarios for the situation on the Central Asian borders in 2026-2050.

"In the context of the indicated range of challenges and threats, as well as forecasts for 2019-2050, early identifying vectors of concentration of ideological and military-political efforts and creating scenarios for the development of the situation on the Afghanistan borders is becoming a strategic and existential task for interested parties in Western, Southern and Central Asia," Vyacheslav Kocharyan pointed out.

During the two sessions of the conference, experts discussed many issues, including the internal political situation in Afghanistan, the Taliban's personnel and ethnic policies, the risks of the spread of terrorism and extremism and the impact of the Afghan crisis on the security of neighboring states, as well as the prospects for regional infrastructure projects.

The recommendations developed during the conference will be summarized and sent to the Working Group on Afghanistan under the CSTO Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, to be used for the Organization's practical activities.