ALMATY. May 31 (Interfax) - Rising military threats on the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) perimeter require an improvement of collective security forces and hardware, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said.
"An analysis of the military-political situation shows that it remains tense and is characterized with increasing military threats on the organization's perimeter," Belousov said at a meeting of the CSTO Council of Defense Ministers on Friday.
In these conditions, "there is need for precise coordination and continuous improvement of collective security forces and hardware and streamlined decision-making mechanisms," he said.
"Military cooperation in the CSTO has the priority role in the development of an effective security system. We are committed to its development in every essential area," Belousov said.
"Another reason why this is so important is that Western states are set to undermine alliances between CSTO member states and to discredit the organization's activity," he said.
"A real information war has been waged on us, economic sanctions have been imposed, and direct pressure has been applied," Belousov said, adding that the CSTO should focus on a number of key objectives in this context.