Russia calls for coordination among CSTO allies

Russian President Vladimir Putin, Tuesday called for coordination between Russia and its allies to guard against the threats to the global security system.

Speaking at a meeting of the Russian-led security group, the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), Putin said that there was an urgent need for joint efforts to protect the borders of the CSTO countries, and to deal with the problems brought about by terrorism, drug trafficking, organised crime, as well as natural and man-made disasters, according to a Xinhua report.

The Russian president noted that the rise of the Islamic State (IS) and the situation in Afghanistan constituted the major threats to the security of the CSTO countries.

"Terrorists of the Islamic State (IS) have been attempting to include some provinces of Afghanistan into their so-called "Islamic caliphate" ... and trying to expand their activities to Central Asia," Kremlin press service quoted Putin as saying.

The meeting identified as a possible destabilising factor, the return of individuals to CSTO territories after having fought for international terrorist organisations.

The CSTO must be ready for preventive measures and closer cooperation with Afghanistan in particular, while more attention should be paid to the security situation at the Tajik-Afghan border, Putin said.

A joint statement released after the meeting called for strengthening international cooperation and constructive compromises, in order to repel security challenges and threats.

Putin said that Russia's new heavy-class Angara rockets were tasked with sending military and dual-purpose satellites into orbit, which would enhance defence capabilities of Russia and its security partners.

Earlier Tuesday, Russia successfully carried out the first test launch of the new heavy-class Angara A5 rocket.

Putin also said that the newly built Russian national defence centre could also work for the CSTO countries to enhance coordination and improve their defence capabilities.

CSTO is an intergovernmental military alliance signed May 15, 1992. In 1992, six post-Soviet states, which were part of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) -- Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan -- signed the Collective Security Treaty.

Three more post-Soviet states -- Azerbaijan, Belarus and Georgia -- came on board the next year and the treaty took effect in 1994.

Five years later, six of the nine -- all but Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Uzbekistan -- agreed to renew the treaty for five more years, and in 2002 those six countries formally agreed to create the CSTO as a military alliance. Uzbekistan rejoined the CSTO in 2005, but withdrew in 2012.