Stanislav Zass, secretary-general of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), called the situation on the borders of Afghanistan as dangerous and warned of the risk of spreading terrorist activities, illegal smuggling of weapons, and drugs from Afghanistan to member countries of the organization. The CSTO is made up of six post-Soviet states, including Russia, Armenia and Kazakhstan, and was created after the breakup of the Soviet Union.
At a meeting of the Collective Security Treaty Organization this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin also expressed his concern about the increasing risk of terrorists infiltrating from Afghanistan to Central Asia and said that this issue requires a joint efforts. “We consider the close coordination of the member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization regarding the problem of Afghanistan to be important,” he said. “It is necessary to work together to identify the threats of terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking.”
The CSTO meeting was held just after the fourth Moscow consultative meeting on Afghanistan. In addition, Putin said that another priority of the organization is to help establish an inclusive government in Afghanistan with the participation of representatives of all ethnic groups. Representatives from other participants, including China, India, Iran, and Pakistan, confirmed the necessity of forming an inclusive government in Afghanistan and declared that the future of Afghanistan should be decided by its people, with the cooperation of regional international partners.
Also this week, the European Parliament was told of the worsening situation in Afghanistan. In Strasbourg, France, Roberta Metsola, the parliament’s president, condemned escalating violence against women in Afghanistan. Furthermore, Metsola warned the international community that the Taliban will soon start practicing execution of capital punishment in public.
