MINSK, August 16 (Itar-Tass) —— Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko holds that member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) that have no wish fully to cooperate in the organization should leave it. “If a state adheres to the CSTO provisions, this means that it should fully cooperate in the organization’s framework. If this is not so, then it should leave,” Lukashenko told reporters on Tuesday during his official visit to Qatar.
Lukashenko said, “A serious step towards overcoming contradictions within the organization was taken” at the CSTO informal summit in Astana, sources in the presidential press service told Itar-Tass.
According to the president, it was decided at the summit that there was a need to draft a document setting out the trends of the organization’s development by the CSTO summit due in December 2011.
The press service noted with a reference to the Belarussian president that “it was suggested that Russia should be more active in establishing the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces and in arming them.”
Cooperation of the CSTO states in the economic area was also discussed. It was noted that certain progress in the development of economic relations with Russia had been achieved. “The result was apparent on Monday, at the Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Union State also on prospects for the negotiations on gas supply to Belarus and on signing the gas contract,” sources in the press service said.