DUSHANBE, September 13, 2008, Asia-Plus – The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) intends to form a five-sided group in the Central Asian region for political deterrence, The CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha announced at a press conference in Moscow on September 12.
“If all parties concerned agree, we are going to have a five- sided group in the Central Asian region – four Central Asia’s states (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) and Russia,” the secretary general said.
According to him, the Organization supposes to have quite a large group that would include not just small but also large units. “It means the level of brigades, regiments and divisions,” Bordyuzha noted.
The group is dedicated to secure political control over the situation in the region even if the situation in Afghanistan escalates, he said.
“This group should be prepared to repel any threat to the sovereignty of our states,” Bordyuzha said, adding that the core of the group will be a CSTO Rapid Deployment Force, which would consist of ten battalions.
