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CSTO will not join peacekeeping operation in South Ossetia

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  • CSTO will not join peacekeeping operation in South Ossetia

    RIA Novosti, Russia
    Aug 10 2004

    CSTO WILL NOT JOIN PEACEKEEPING OPERATION IN SOUTH OSSETIA


    MOSCOW, August 10 (RIA Novosti) - The Collective Security Treaty
    Organization (CSTO: Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan
    and Tajikistan) adopted a concept for peacekeeping activities, CSTO
    Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha told a press conference in
    Moscow.

    "We have adopted a concept for the CSTO's peacekeeping activities,"
    he said, "which stipulates the formation of peacekeeping potential by
    common consent of CSTO member states."

    He said that the concept permitted peacekeeping contingents to be
    trained according to a single system and for roles to be distributed.
    "We plan to use this peacekeeping potential under the UN aegis in
    CSTO territory and worldwide at the UN request," he noted.

    He stressed that the organization must not join the peacekeeping
    operation in South Ossetia now. "Previous decisions must be
    implemented to settle the conflict," he added.

    Mr. Bordyuzha said that the Georgian president's statements were
    "very contradictory." "It is impossible to put them together to see
    his [the Georgian president's] position," he said and added that
    today, nobody wanted a repetition of when the Caucasus was hit by
    Georgian-Abkhaz, Georgian-Ossetian, and Armenian-Azeri interethnic
    conflicts ten years ago. "New politicians lack our experience but
    they should understand that if a conflict is unleashed there is no
    way back," he emphasized.

    Summing up the results of the recent exercises of the CSTO's joint
    rapid deployment forces in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, the secretary
    general said that his organization was concerned about the
    developments in Afghanistan. "Presidential elections will be held in
    Afghanistan on October 9 and," he noted, "therefore, the remaining
    Talibs and Al Qaeda terrorists have become active."

    "As for the situation in Central Asia, I am not concerned about it,"
    he added.

    Mr. Bordyuzha said that the strength of the joint rapid deployment
    forces met the present-day tasks and that the forces were ready for
    an operative response to regional developments.

    According to him, the 11 battalions are perfectly trained and can
    fulfill all tasks set by the CSTO leadership.

    Presently, the CSTO command is ready to give a proper and rapid
    response to the possible aggravation of the situation, Mr. Bordyuzha
    said.

    "We need 1.5-2 hours to make a decision on the use of force in case
    of local aggravations," he said. "Servicemen can be deployed in this
    area in several hours."

    In his words, a plan of the joint rapid deployment forces'
    development until 2010 has been worked out and stipulates common
    equipment and armament for the armed forces and their transfer to the
    contractual basis, the secretary general reported.

    "In my opinion, the best way is to form a single brigade of rapid
    deployment forces under single command. We hope to accomplish this
    goal in the future," he concluded.

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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