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Armenian-Azerbaijani border must be delimited urgently — CSTO

"The deployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent and the ongoing negotiation process strengthen the perspective of a long-term peace," he said

MOSCOW, May 25. /TASS/. The escalation at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border demands urgent resolution of the issue of demarcation and delimitation of borders between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Collective Security Treaty Organization press service said Tuesday, citing CSTO Deputy Secretary General Valery Semerikov.

"The recently emerged escalation at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border requires taking urgent measures, first and foremost of political and diplomatic nature, as well as resolution of issues on delimitation and demarcation of border between Armenia and Azerbaijan," Semerikov said at the meeting of the Coordination Council of national security and defense committees’ chairmen.

He noted that the situation in the region has mostly stabilized after the November 9 trilateral statement of the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia.

"The deployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent and the ongoing negotiation process strengthen the perspective of a long-term peace," he said.

The Deputy Secretary General also noted that the US and NATO reinforce their military contingents and military infrastructure in Eastern European states and the Baltics, in direct proximity of the CSTO western borders.

"At the same time, they also dismantle the international arms control architecture," he underscored.

According to Semerikov, Central Asia’s geographical location, with its hydrocarbon deposits, mineral resources and transport communications, make the region an area of competition between the global centers of power for influence.

"And the presence of such problems as water deficit, border ambiguity, threats and challenges coming from conflict areas in Afghanistan and the Middle East generally worsen the vulnerability of Central Asian countries to outside negative effects," he said.

The official noted that the CSTO also takes threats originating from Afghanistan into consideration. The member states consistently take complex measures, aimed at reduction of tension at the Tajik-Afghan border.

"In particular, we’ve made some serious progress in developing the Targeted international program on reinforcement of the Tajik-Afghan state border," Semerikov noted.