On July 15, 2026, the High-Level Regional Meeting “Enhancing Capacities to Prevent the Supply of Weapons to Terrorists in Central Asia” was held in Moscow, organized by the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism with the participation of the Russian side.
On July 14, 2026, a working meeting was held at the CSTO Secretariat between CSTO Deputy Secretary General Valery Semerikov and UN Assistant Secretary-General Alexander Zuev.
From July 7 to 9, second staff talks were held in the Russian Federation on the organization and conduct of the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Forces (CRRF) command-and-staff exercise “Interaction-2026”, the special reconnaissance exercise “Poisk-2026”, and the logistics support exercise “Echelon-2026”.
In accordance with the 2026 Action Plan of the Coordinating Council of Heads of the Competent Authorities for Countering Illicit Drug Trafficking of the CSTO Member States, and as part of the Russian Federation's priorities during its 2026 CSTO Chairmanship, the sub-regional counter-narcotics operation “Kanal – Amber Coast” was conducted from June 29 to July 3, 2026. The operation was aimed at disrupting trafficking routes for narcotic drugs, their precursors and analogues, new psychoactive substances, and potent substances into the CSTO area of responsibility, neutralizing international transnational drug trafficking groups, dismantling clandestine drug production facilities, undermining the economic foundations of the drug trade, including the laundering of drug proceeds.
The CSTO Military Committee Discussed Issues of Developing Military Cooperation
17.04.2026
Under the leadership of Chairman of the CSTO Military Committee, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, General of the Army Valery Gerasimov, the 24th meeting of the Military Committee on issues of developing military cooperation among CSTO member states was held in a videoconference format.
The meeting was attended by Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Belarus, Major General Pavel Muraveyko; First Deputy Minister of Defense – Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Lieutenant General Kanysh Abubakirov; Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Kyrgyz Republic, Major General Tariel Otonbaev; Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Republic of Tajikistan, Lieutenant General Bobodzhon Saidzoda; Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov; and CSTO Deputy Secretary General Mirlan Turgunbekov.
Members of the Military Committee discussed priority areas of the CSTO’s activities in the military sphere proposed by the Russian Federation for the period of its chairmanship in the Organization in 2026, as well as measures for their implementation.
During the meeting, challenges and threats to military security in the CSTO collective security regions were discussed. A report on this issue was delivered by First Deputy Chief of the Joint Staff – Head of the Planning and Training Center for the Employment of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces), Lieutenant General Khasan Kaloev.
Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov presented a report on the results of joint training of command and control bodies and formations of forces and assets of the CSTO collective security system in 2025 and the tasks for 2026.
The participants also considered issues related to improving the command and control system of the components of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces), on which a report was delivered by Head of the Planning Directorate for the Employment of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) – Deputy Head of the Planning and Training Center for the Employment of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) of the Joint Staff, Lieutenant General Anatoly Yakovlev.
The members of the Military Committee heard a report by Head of the Peacekeeping Activities Directorate of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Lieutenant Colonel Temirlan Musapirov, on the experience and practice of participation of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan in a United Nations peacekeeping mission.
During the meeting, in order to enhance the combat potential of the military component of the Organization, the Military Committee recommended that the general staffs of the armed forces of the CSTO member states, jointly with the CSTO Joint Staff, continue work, in particular, on including in national contingents assigned to the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) units of unmanned systems, electronic warfare and air defense.
The CSTO Joint Staff, together with the general staffs of the armed forces of the CSTO member states, was also recommended to organize the incorporation into the system of joint training of command and control bodies and formations of forces and assets of the CSTO collective security system of the experience gained from the employment of troops in modern armed conflicts, as well as to continue the practice of organizing displays and demonstrations of the capabilities of modern and перспективных models of armaments and military and special equipment during joint exercises, with the involvement of industrial enterprises of the CSTO member states.
Summing up the results of the meeting, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation – First Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, General of the Army Valery Gerasimov, stated, in particular: “We have thoroughly discussed the progress in implementing the priority areas of the Organization’s activities put forward by the Russian Federation within the framework of its CSTO chairmanship this year.”
The Chairman of the Military Committee also emphasized that particular attention was paid to issues related to the organization of joint operational and combat training, taking into account the specifics of conducting military operations in modern armed conflicts. The main training activities this year will be joint exercises to be held in Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.
In conclusion, he noted that the meeting of the CSTO Military Committee was held in a constructive manner with a focus on practical outcomes, and that its results will contribute to strengthening the military security of the Organization’s member states.
