🗓 On November 10 in Moscow, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov chaired a joint meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defence Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (#CSTO). Taalatbek Masadykov, who took office as CSTO Secretary General on January 1, 2026, also took part. The participants held a constructive and engaged exchange of views on pressing international and regional issues. 👉 Sergey Lavrov's remarks at the Plenary Session of the International Collective Security Forum They discussed the situation in the CSTO’s area of responsibility and neighbouring regions and reaffirmed their commitment to working more closely together to strengthen the Organisation’s ability to counter growing security challenges and threats. These include the rising risk of conflict, terrorist activity, drug trafficking, illegal migration and crimes involving information and communications technologies. ✍️ The participants reviewed a number of documents for subsequent approval by the CSTO Collective Security Council. They endorsed decisions to further strengthen the Organisation’s capabilities, including measures to develop its Collective Aviation Forces and air defence capabilities and to ensure biological security in the CSTO’s area of responsibility. They also endorsed several joint political statements, including the Summit’s final declaration. The participants paid particular attention to strengthening interparliamentary cooperation as the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly marks its 20th anniversary. They endorsed the draft Agreement on the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly. A plan of events was prepared for signature by the Heads of State to mark two anniversaries in 2027 – 35 years since the signing of the Collective Security Treaty and 25 years since the establishment of the CSTO. The participants agreed to submit documents on the staffing of the Organisation’s permanent bodies to the Heads of State. 👉 Sergey Lavrov's remarks at the joint meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defence Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils of the CSTO Tajikistan’s Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin briefed the participants on his country’s priorities for its CSTO chairmanship in 2027. 🤝 The next meeting of the CSTO Council of Foreign Ministers will take place in Tajikistan in the first half of 2027.

🎙 Remarks and response to a question by Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the Plenary Session of the International Collective Security Forum (Moscow, November 10, 2026) Key points: • Russian initiatives to establish a single treaty-based legal framework for security across Europe were rejected. I remember very clearly reminding our Western colleagues of the principle of indivisible security. It requires that no country or organisation in the Euro-Atlantic area strengthen its own security at the expense of others or lay claim to dominance. • As you know, our most recent attempt came in December 2021, when we tried to prevent the inevitable. I want to stress that point, as President Vladimir Putin has explained on more than one occasion. We knew for certain that serious preparations were under way, with Western support, for a major military crackdown on Donbass (the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics). We could not allow that to happen. • We have no illusions about the administration of US President Donald Trump. We recognise the fundamental differences between us over the future course of international politics. ☝️ Even so, it is always better to talk. That was true even during the Cold War, when our military maintained contact with their American counterparts. It remains true of our relations with the US today. • We have our own position paper [on a new security architecture in Eurasia]. We also have what #CSTO Secretary General Taalatbek Masadykov has just outlined. The CSTO works closely with other subregional organisations on the continent, including the #CIS and the #SCO, and has signed memoranda of cooperation with them. • Africa has around a dozen subregional organisations. Latin America, too, certainly has around ten such organisations. Both regions also have a continent-wide umbrella organisation that brings all their countries together. Eurasia, the world’s largest continent, rich in natural resources and densely populated, has no such umbrella organisation. Yet closer links are essential if we are to achieve a sensible division of labour and make the most of the advantages that God and history have bestowed on the peoples of Eurasia. We need those links to avoid duplication and optimise logistics projects and transport routes. • Our aim is to come together and take stock of what we already have – the subregional organisations already in place and the links between them. We have no plans to create a new organisation. Consider the links between the EAEU and ASEAN, the SCO and ASEAN, the EAEU and the SCO, and those linking the CIS, the SCO and the CSTO. To some extent, what we call the “integration of integrations” is already under way. Read in full

🎙 Remarks by Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the joint meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defence Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (Moscow, November 10, 2026) 💬 Sergey Lavrov: We are pleased to welcome you to Moscow for this regular joint meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defence Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (#CSTO). As Russia chairs the Organisation in 2026, we attach particular importance to the success of today’s meeting. Throughout our chairmanship, we have sought to make fuller use of the #CSTO’s potential for integration to deepen cooperation and partnership with our closest allies across all areas. I am grateful to my fellow Ministers for the engaging Session we held earlier today at the International Collective Security Forum. We had a frank and professional exchange of views, which experts will take up in their discussions. ☝️ I am confident that the Forum’s work will contribute to building a free, multipolar and democratic world order. 👉 This entails building a new security architecture on our shared continent of Eurasia, based on the principles of equal and indivisible security and open to all countries on the continent willing to engage constructively on an equal footing. During Russia’s chairmanship, we have placed particular emphasis on closer foreign policy coordination, on countering both traditional and new challenges and threats, and on strengthening the CSTO’s military capabilities. We have worked hard to reinforce the CSTO’s role as a key guarantor of regional security. This work reflects the priorities that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, this year’s Chair of the Collective Security Council, set out with the support of the member states. 🤝 We are grateful to our friends for their steadfast support as we pursue the objectives of Russia’s chairmanship. These efforts serve our common interests. Read in full