YEREVAN, MARCH 15, ARMENPRESS. Russia is interested in the development of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Mikhail Popov told Red Star newspaper, adding that Moscow would like to turn CSTO into a universal international organization, reports TASS.

“Russia supports the qualitative development of the CSTO and turning it into a universal international organization that will be capable of resisting regional threats and military-political challenges”, he said. “The military-political partnership in the CSTO format contributes to the progress of integration processes both in the CIS and the whole Central Asia region”, Popov added. “Russia is ready for dialogue and cooperation with any country with equal and mutually beneficial conditions”.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan