Russia intends to transform the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) into a universal international organization, the Deputy Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Yevgeny Lukyanov, said.
"Our country will actively use the potential of regional and subregional integration in the framework of the CIS and the EE to turn the CSTO into a universal international organization capable of countering a broad range of modern challenges and threats," TASS cited him as saying.
In addition, Russia also plans to boost cooperation with partners in BRICS and RIC, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, APEC, the G20 and other international organizations.
"Russia is ready to increase cooperation and build partnership relations with the United States and countries of the Euro-Atlantic region. At the same time, we stress that attempts to conduct bilateral dialogue from a position of force and by increasing NATO military potential and moving the alliance’s infrastructure towards Russia’s borders are unacceptable," Lukyanov said.
"We took into consideration the high level of economic and information pressure against Russia over the past years due to its independent foreign policy course," the Deputy Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Yevgeny Lukyanov, explained.
"But, unlike the US, we do not use Cold War era terms and do not divide countries into "good" and "bad" ones, and we do not declare certain states or regions to be enemies or national security threats. On the contrary, the national security strategy says Russia adheres to "an open, rational and pragmatic foreign policy prioritizing the principles of international law, mutual respect for nations, their cultures, traditions and interests," he said.
The Deputy Secretary of the Russian Security Council noted that Russia will further focus on issues of disarmament and compliance with the non-proliferation regime. "At the same time, it should be understood that the country’s national interests underline the need to support its own deterrence potential, which guarantees sovereignty and Russia’s territorial integrity," Yevgeny Lukyanov stressed.
