DUSHANBE, July 31, Asia-plus – RIA Novsoti — The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has proposed to another regional security organization joining efforts on post-conflict rehabilitation of Afghanistan, the CSTO secretary general said Tuesday.
“We together, including China, which makes part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization [SCO] should assist in preventing the Taliban from coming to power, otherwise we will get serious problems in Afghanistan, problems for many years,” Nikolai Bordyuzha said during a video conference between RIA Novosti and the Russian information center in Beijing.
Bordyuzha said assistance to Afghanistan should not only be limited to armaments and finances.
“Work should be conducted in all spheres, political and economic, and assistance in the formation of armed forces, law enforcement and the fight against illegal drug trafficking,” he said.
The CSTO comprises Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The SCO comprises Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, with Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan and India as observers.
Bordyuzha also said the two organizations will soon sign a protocol of cooperation.
“A cooperation protocol will be signed in a few days or weeks, and cooperation trends between the two organizations will be clearly defined in it,” he said.
