Russian President Vladimir Putin and the participants of the CSTO extraordinary session expressed their concern over the developments in Afghanistan and potential threats emanating from that country, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.
"The president took part in the extraordinary meeting of the CSTO Collective Security Council, which was held via videoconference," Peskov said, noting that Putin himself came up with the initiative. - "Putin and the other heads of state and government who took part in the meeting expressed their deep concern about the events in Afghanistan and potential threats which emanate from Afghanistan".
The Russian president's press secretary noted that the event was organized by Tajik President Emomali Rahmon in a very short time. According to Peskov, all participants in the virtual meeting expressed gratitude to the presiding country.
IS positions in Afghanistan
The Kremlin spokesman also said the CSTO leaders expressed concern that the Islamic State (IS, banned in Russia) group maintains strong positions in Afghanistan.
"The participants and the president [of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin] in his speech expressed particular concern about the fact that ISIS (former name of IS - TASS) maintains quite strong positions in Afghanistan. This is also a very dangerous trend, which poses a danger to the CSTO space," the Kremlin spokesman said.
The Russian president spoke in favor of the need to coordinate approaches to the Afghan problem within the UN Security Council and the G20, Peskov said. "On the whole, there is an understanding, and this was stressed by President Putin in his speech, of the need to coordinate approaches [to the Afghan problem], including within the framework of the United Nations, the Security Council and the G20," Peskov said.
He also said that Putin had recently held detailed telephone conversations on the situation in Afghanistan with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, President Ibrahim Raisi of Iran, President Emmanuel Macron of France, and Prime Minister Mario Draghi of Italy. "Of course Afghanistan was high on the agenda during the contacts and recent talks that President Putin had with German Chancellor Merkel," Peskov concluded.
Measures for a joint response to the threat emanating from Afghanistan are to be worked out by September 16.
"The heads of state and government agreed to instruct the councils of foreign and defense ministers and the committee of security council secretaries together with the secretariat to urgently work out measures of a joint response to a potential threat currently coming from Afghanistan," the Kremlin spokesman said.
According to him, due to the current situation, "there are real risks for the entire Eurasian region and the world as a whole." "This has been emphasized by the participants, and the leaders expect this instruction to be fulfilled before September 16, when the heads of the Collective Security Council [CSTO] will meet again in Dushanbe at a full-length session," Peskov said and added that this dialogue will be continued then as well.
Recruitment of extremists
CSTO leaders noted the importance of preventing their citizens from being recruited by extremists through social networks and the Internet, the Kremlin added.
"It was noted that it is important to prevent infiltration of radical Islamism in the territory of the CSTO member states and prevent the recruitment of citizens of our countries into the ranks of extremists, including using social networks and the Internet," Peskov said, referring to Monday's extraordinary session of the CSTO Collective Security Council.
He also said that "the problem of Afghan drug trafficking is still extremely acute". The Kremlin spokesman noted that the CSTO would have to monitor very closely how events will develop in this regard.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS