MOSCOW, June 24. /TASS/. Growing world tensions may require an expansion of the membership and functionality of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, CSTO Secretary General Imangali Tasmagambetov has told TASS in an interview.
"Growing tensions in the rapidly deteriorating system of international security will apparently draw ever more attention to organizations such as the CSTO. The socio-political demand for greater security may require the expansion of the organization's functionality and, possibly, admission of new members," Tasmagambetov said, commenting on the CSTO's prospects.
At the same time, as he stressed, the key vector of the organization's development is related to the traditional track of its activity - political and diplomatic.
"The very mechanism of decision-making by consensus implies that the basic toolkit for the implementation of the statutory goals is negotiations and the search for mutually acceptable solutions at the political level. We are certain that any problem can be resolved diplomatically, provided there is political will and the wish to negotiate," he continued.
Tasmagambetov, in particular, noted that comments by the chief delegates who attended the meetings of the CSTO's statutory bodies confirmed that the organization was successfully coping with the functions assigned to it.
"Both observers and representatives of the expert community agree with this by and large. I would define the peacekeeping potential that the organization has as the 'point of growth'. We are constantly improving it," Tasmagambetov pointed out. "We consider the parliamentary dimension to be another productive area. There is a huge potential, which, unfortunately, has not yet been fully tapped. The analytical component of the Secretariat's activities is also developing dynamically. We have achieved success in establishing cooperation with think tanks in the organization’s member states and a number of other countries."
"As for concerns, just as any other international organization we have controversies and discussions from time to time. However, the level of mutual understanding among the member states is high enough for these issues to be quickly resolved," Tasmagambetov stressed. "The future of the CSTO will be determined by the countries that make up the alliance. With their independence and sovereign right to determine their foreign policy they choose the proper tools to ensure national security. The history of the past two centuries shows that collective security is the most relevant toolkit."