MOSCOW, May 16. /TASS/. The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) stands for solving international problems by political and diplomatic means, a statement by the CSTO Collective Security Council on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Collective Security Treaty and the 20th anniversary of the organization said.
"With the appropriate capacity to ensure the security and stability of member states, the organization firmly believes that there is no alternative to the solution of existing international problems by political and diplomatic means and gives priority to the development of coordinated approaches to the problems of improving the international situation, countering threats and challenges faced by Member States of the CSTO," the statement published on the Kremlin’s website on Monday reads.
The statement notes that the peacekeeping operation in Kazakhstan in January "has confirmed the readiness of the collective forces [of the CSTO] to effectively solve the problems of ensuring the security of its member states," and demonstrated to the international community the ability to quickly deploy and conduct missions, "thereby demonstrating the high status of the CSTO in the system of international and regional organizations."
At the same time, according to the statement, during the period since the signing of the Collective Security Treaty, international relations in conditions of fragmentation of the world community "are increasingly characterized by the aggravation of tension."
The CSTO is an international security organization, which currently includes six member-states: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. On May 15, 1992, in Tashkent, the leaders of Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan (which is no longer a member of the CSTO since 2012) signed the treaty establishing the organization. In 1993, Azerbaijan, Georgia (both countries left the CSTO in 1999) and Belarus joined the organization.