A meeting of the Working Group of the Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities on Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking (CCHN) on organizing international anti-drug operations within the CSTO framework was held in Aktau, Republic of Kazakhstan.
The Open International Youth Sambo Festival of National Teams of the CSTO Member States was held at the International Sambo Center in Moscow.
On August 17–19, at the invitation of Colonel General Alexander Manilov, Chairman of the Coordination Service of the Council of Border Troops Commanders of the CIS, a delegation of the CSTO Joint Staff headed by Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov took part in international events held in the area of responsibility of the Border Directorate of the Russian Federal Security Service for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.
On August 14, consultations were held via videoconference at the CSTO Joint Staff with representatives of relevant ministries and agencies of the CSTO member states on organizing joint training activities for command and control bodies and formations of the CSTO collective security system in 2027.
CSTO member states strengthen cooperation in combating drug trafficking
27.08.2026
A meeting of the Working Group of the Coordination Council of Heads of Competent Authorities on Combating Illicit Drug Trafficking (CCHN) on organizing international anti-drug operations within the CSTO framework was held in Aktau, Republic of Kazakhstan.
The meeting was attended by CSTO Secretariat Adviser and Deputy Secretary of the CCHN of the CSTO member states Mikhail Melikhov, representatives of the competent authorities of the CSTO member states, as well as representatives of the Central Asian Regional Information and Coordination Centre (CARICC), the Eurasian Group on Combating Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism, the Committee of Heads of Law Enforcement Units of the Council of Heads of Customs Services of the CIS member states, and other partner structures.
Particular attention was paid to preparations for the regional anti-drug operation “Channel – Caspian Lighthouse”, with its active phase scheduled for October 2026. The participants discussed the operational situation, drug trafficking routes, joint activities, information exchange, and efforts to counter the legalization of drug proceeds.
The delegations agreed that under the current circumstances, operational information exchange, coordinated action by law enforcement agencies, and joint special anti-drug operations are of particular importance. This format makes it possible to identify transnational criminal links in a timely manner, establish the organizers of drug trafficking networks, and disrupt drug supplies at various stages.
The international “Channel” operation is aimed precisely at strengthening such cooperation. It brings together the efforts of the competent authorities of the CSTO member states to counter international drug trafficking, dismantle clandestine laboratories, disrupt supply channels, combat the distribution of drugs via the Internet, and undermine the financial infrastructure of the illicit drug market.
