Heads of CIS diplomatic missions discussed the attempts of the West to extend its influence in Central Asia by damaging relations in a number of structures involving the region, Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, made the statement at a press conference on Friday following a meeting of the CIS Council of Ministers in Dushanbe.
"We discussed the situation in Central Asia, including those attempts with regard to the Central Asian region, which are made by our Western colleagues, the United States, the European Union and the NATO, attempts aimed at strengthening their influence in the region by damaging the relations within the CSTO, CIS, SCO and the Eurasian Economic Union," he said.
According to Lavrov, the ministers also considered the situation around Afghanistan and its impact on security in Central Asia. "Additional tasks were set for the implementation of the decisions of the heads of states regarding the mobilization of additional efforts to combat the terrorist threat and the threat of drug trafficking," the minister added.
The CIS foreign ministers also discussed the Armenian-Azerbaijani settlement, as Lavrov stressed, with representatives of Baku and Yerevan assessing the "important proactive role of the Russian Federation" in resolving the crisis.
GSV "Russia - Islamic world"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS