Speaking at a joint meeting of the Council of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (PA CSTO) and the 15th Plenary Session of the PA CSTO in Moscow, Chairman of the Majlisi Milli (Tajikistan’s upper house of parliament) Rustam Emomali yesterday drew attention of the meeting participants to conflicts arising in various regions of the world and creating problems for the development of most countries, according to the Majlisi Oli (Tajikistan’s parliament) press center.    

Concerning the difficult situation in Afghanistan, Emomali raised the issue of security of Tajikistan’s common border with Afghanistan. 

He reportedly stressed the need and importance of strengthening the protection of the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border as the southern border of the Collective Security Treaty Organization area of responsibility.  

Emomali noted that cooperation between the CSTO member nations has been established at a qualitatively new level in order to address modern challenges and threats, the Majisi Oli press center says.  

The State Duma (Russia’s lower house of parliament) press center says the PA CSTO PA discussed the drafts of the model recommendations for the national laws of the CSTO member countries on closing the channels of penetration of international terrorism, improvement of the laws on electoral processes and protection of the sovereignty of the CSTO member states, as well as a number of other draft laws.

Following the meeting a number of legislative acts were adopted. 

“In particular, for the convergence and coordination of national legislations of the CSTO member nations several legislative recommendations were adopted on defense and security, ensuring the protection of electrical processes and counteracting the risks of uncontrolled distribution of virtual assets,” the Majisi Oli press center added.  

According to the CSTO Secretariat, the CSTO Secretary-General Stanislav Zas reported on the progress in implementing decisions of the CSTO Collective Security Council and on the military and political situation in the CSTO area of responsibility.

In view of the transfer of rotating presidency in the Collective Security Treaty Organization to the Republic of Belarus, Vladimir Andreichenko, Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, reported on priorities of the Republic of Belarus for the period of its presidency in the Organization in 2023.

The PA CSTO is responsible for inter-parliamentary interaction of the IPA CIS members who are also members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).  The PA CSTO was established by a resolution “On Measures for Creating a Parliamentary Dimension of the Collective Security Treaty Organization at the CIS Inter-Parliamentary Assembly”, which was adopted on November 16, 2006 to address the priority goals of the development of the CSTO legal framework within the IPA CIS.

The PA CSTO comprises parliamentary delegations from Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. The administrative and legal framework of the PA CSTO is set out in the Provisional Regulations on the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization dated March 30, 2007.  The PA CSTO Chair and the PA CSTO Council of the heads of parliament (parliament houses) oversee the operation of the PA CSTO. The rotating position of the PA CSTO Chair is held for a period of three years. The Secretariat of the IPA CIS Council has a specialized agency that is responsible for the administrative and technical aspects of the PA CSTO.  The operation of this agency is supervised by the Executive Secretary of the PA CSTO.  The PA CSTO and its Council meet at least twice a year.

The PA CSTO has three standing commissions on defense and security; on political affairs and international cooperation; and on socioeconomic and legal affairs.  The PA CSTO Council has a Working Group on the Standardization and Coordination of the CSTO Member States’ Legislations and the Expert Advisory Council. The Information and Analysis Centre operates under the PA CSTO.

The documents regulating the activities of the PA CSTO bodies include Regulations of the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly; Regulations on the Standing Commissions of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly; Regulations on the Expert Advisory Council at the Council of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly; Regulations on the Information and Analysis Centre of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly; and Regulations on the Secretariat of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization includes Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.