A summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) was held in Dushanbe. The crisis in Syria, the fight against terrorism and cooperation in the field of defense were discussed at the summit.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called on the international community to put aside geopolitical ambitions and double standards, to focus on the fight against terrorism. "We must put aside geopolitical ambitions, abandon the so-called double standards, the policy of direct or indirect use of certain terrorist groups for opportunistic purposes, including changes of government and regimes disliked by someone," the head of state stressed.
Putin described the situation in Syria, Iraq and the Middle East as very difficult, because the terrorists occupy significant areas there and state that they wish to gain control of Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem.
"Naturally, we are concerned about their possible return to our territories. Elementary common sense and responsibility for global and regional security demand the collective effort of the international community," Putin concluded.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko spoke about the necessity for a military build-up in connection with worsening external risks. "This situation requires the strengthening of military power and the collective rapid reaction forces," RIA Novosti cited him as saying.
The Director of the Analytical Center of the Institute of International Studies, Andrey Kazantsev, stressed that Vladimir Putin had in mind the need to unite in the fight against terrorism in Central Asia, which is represented not only by Islamic State, but also other extremist Islamist organizations.
"In his speech he pointed out that Islamic State is an increasingly growing threat, because there are a lot of terrorist organizations in Russia and other former Soviet states," Kazantsev noted.
In addition, Putin also raised the question of the crisis in Afghanistan. "Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan are under the most impact now, but Russia and Kazakhstan are providing them with the necessary help. But the contribution of Belarus in this direction is not very large," the expert concluded.
