Putin highlights importance of using CIS security councils’ capabilities to ensure stability

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday highlighted the importance of fully utilizing the capabilities of the security councils of Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries to ensure stability within the organization.

In an address to the 14th meeting of the secretaries of the security councils of CIS member states, Putin said the meeting would provide an opportunity to discuss a wide range of issues and exchange views on priority measures to “most effectively” protect their citizens from external and internal threats.

“Today – amid a complex geopolitical situation and the escalation of conflicts in various regions of the world – it is essential to make the fullest possible use of the significant analytical and forecasting capabilities of your respective agencies,” Putin was quoted as saying in a transcript published by the Kremlin.

Putin described this as vital for bolstering the security and sovereignty of CIS states and ensuring stability throughout the organization’s geographic scope.

“It is important to assess ongoing developments in a comprehensive and objective manner, and to actively foster cooperation in order to successfully address our shared objectives,” Putin went on to say, expressing confidence that the meeting would contribute to these efforts.

The latest meeting of the CIS Security Council secretaries was held in the Russian capital Moscow, where Sergey Shoygu, secretary of Russia’s Security Council, also delivered an address highlighting the growing potential for conflict worldwide and increasing threats of interference in the internal affairs of independent countries, among other issues.

“Naturally, the growing role of countries from the Global South and East on the international stage meets with fierce resistance from the West, which has no desire for a polycentric and equitable world order based on respect for the rights and interests of all participants in the intergovernmental dialogue,” Shoygu said.

Expressing Russia’s appreciation for US President Donald Trump’s efforts to resolve the situation in Ukraine, Shoygu accused Europe of continuing to militarize itself and NATO of expanding and modernizing its military infrastructure in Poland and the Baltics.

“At the same time, technical reconnaissance of the territory of Russia and Belarus is being conducted. Provocations are regularly carried out in the border regions,” Shoygu said, additionally accusing Ukraine and its European partners of “preparing for war – for its continuation – rather than for peace.”