Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko met with Secretary General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Stanislav Zas on Tuesday to discuss the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. The head of state spoke on this and other issues related to the situation in the CSTO, including Belarus' position on the matter, BelTA reported.
“This conflict [between Armenia and Azerbaijan] must be settled. God forbid we let the conflict on the border between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan flare up. This is unacceptable. We must put an end to this. That is not good that we cannot stop these conflicts in the CSTO. We should discuss these issues very seriously at the next session of the CSTO,” the Belarusian leader said.
According to him, Belarus has initiated a number of discussions within the CSTO, including those related to the media, analysis and crisis response.
“There are a lot of issues. We need to act in order to avoid being called a paper tiger or something else. There are probably some who do not want to work. We need to work with those who want to make the CSTO a strong political and military organization. This is the position of Belarus. We are all for it. But we are against playing games and using the CSTO as a tool to settle some internal political problems. Everyone has them, but that is not why we have set up the CSTO,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
Ahead of another CSTO summit scheduled for the second half of November, the Belarusian president first of all drew attention to the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.
"However, you yourself were there, saw what was happening. And the head of the [CSTO] Joint Staff worked. However, they are professionals. For example, when it was proposed to send a CSTO mission there, I thought: And what is it that do we have stronger people than Zas here in Belarus? What? Will they cope better? Not only because I want to praise you. You are involved in that process, you see what is happening there. Well, then follow and report. Why send some observers there from Belarus, Russia, etc.? What is there to revolve around Russia?" said the head of the Belarusian state.
Lukashenko noted that Russia is already a mediator in the settlement of the situation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and that is quite enough.
"The war is over. It is clear how it ended. The parties have decided that they need a mediator; this is a norm, a classic. Naturally, it is Russia. They have petitioned to Russia. Russia has sent hundreds of people there. We remember how airplanes used to fly. Russian border guards, as Putin said, are at all border locations—both with Turkey and Iran, between Armenia and Azerbaijan, etc. What else is needed? Let them work in that regard. I did not say for nothing that a certain game is going on. I understand what kind of game, why they have engaged the European Union there if there is already a mediator there. And shall they engage the CSTO as well there? It seems that there is nothing else to do," said the Belarusian president.
