Participation in the International Military-Scientific Conference “Applied Aspects of International Activities in the Field of Defense and Security of the CSTO Member States”

On November 20-21, in Minsk, on the basis of the Research Institute of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus, the International Military-Scientific Conference “Applied Aspects of International Activities in the Field of Defense and Security of the CSTO Member States” is being held.

The main objective is stated to be the analysis and systematization of problems in the field of defense and security of the CSTO member states and the identification of ways to solve them.

The conference is attended by representatives of structural units of the Ministry of Defense, the General Staff of the Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus, republican state administration bodies and institutions of higher education, representatives of the armed forces of the CSTO member states, the CSTO Secretariat and the CSTO Joint Staff.

“The current military and political situation requires from us an impartial and comprehensive assessment of the state of the collective forces, analysis and systematization of existing problems in the field of defense and security of the CSTO member states,” Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin, Minister of Defense of the Republic of Belarus, said, in particular. His welcoming remarks were delivered during the conference by Major General Pavel Muraveiko, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces - First Deputy Minister of Defense.

Colonel General Andrei Serdyukov, Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, addressing the conference participants via videoconferencing, said: “I would like to note separately that this conference is being held not for the first time on the hospitable Belarusian soil and is becoming a traditional discussion platform of high expert level for the formation of common views and approaches to the development of the components of the forces and means of the collective security system, the organization of management of the coalition groupings of troops being created in the CSTO format, their interaction and comprehensive support.

It is important to emphasize that in the conditions of a rapidly deteriorating geopolitical situation, growing strategic instability in the world and the rejection of universal norms of international law, it is necessary to develop and take proactive measures at the interstate level to build up the combat potential of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces), to ensure their readiness for a timely, effective and adequate response to emerging risks and threats and to prevent subregional problems from escalating into regional conflicts.

In our view, one of the necessary conditions for this work is to build up the system of basic research organizations of the CSTO, including through the inclusion in it of specialized institutes from all CSTO member states for the scientific study of problematic issues in current areas of development and application of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces).

In this connection, it would be advisable to make more active and wider use of the existing scientific potential, not only for conducting research during joint trainings, but also in the scientific substantiation of the priority areas and measures of coalition military construction, the formation of a prospective image of the military component of our Organization, taking into account existing and foreseeable threats and challenges to collective security, and the improvement of the normative legal framework as it relates to the functioning and use of components of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces).

I believe that the authoritative composition of the conference participants will contribute to the further development of mutually beneficial cooperation in the field of ensuring collective security in the CSTO format, and that the outcome of the conference will be limited not only to a scientific discussion among professional experts, but will serve as a basis for the formation of forward-looking and conceptual views on the development of the military component of the Organization's collective security system”.

Lieutenant General Anatoly Yakovlev, who heads a group of officers of the CSTO Joint Staff, took part in the plenary session and made a report on “Normative legal support for the functioning of the CSTO collective security system”.

Officers from the CSTO Joint Staff participated in the work of the sections and made reports on “Current issues of air defense organization (including countering UAVs) in the interests of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces)”, “On the role of the CSTO Crisis Response Centre in the Organization's crisis response system”, “The current state and possible areas of development of electronic warfare in the interests of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces)”, ‘The current state and possible areas of development of means of communication in the interests of CSTO Troops (Collective Forces)’, and ‘Problematic issues related to the organization of logistics support for CSTO CRRF.

The reports by representatives of the armed forces of CSTO member states are also devoted to the above-mentioned problems.

The event is aimed at discussing the most pressing issues in ensuring the CSTO's collective security and ways of improving it in the light of contemporary challenges and threats.