Afghan and Serbian parliaments acquire observer status at CSTO PA

         The parliaments of Afghanistan and Serbia have acquired observer status in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO PA). The relevant decision was made at a CSTO session held in St. Petersburg. “The Council of the Parliamentary Assembly has reviewed the requests of our Serbian and Afghan partners concerning the observer status and decided to accommodate their requests. This is another evidence of the fact that the CSTO PA is an influential organization in the international arena,” said Chairman of the CSTO Parliamentary Assembly, Speaker of the Russian State Duma Sergei Naryshkin commenting on the outcome of the session. For his part, President of the National Assembly of Serbia Nebojsa Stefanovic noted that Serbia is interested in cooperation with the organization. In particular, he called counter-terrorism efforts one of the promising areas of cooperation.
The CSTO PA also discussed the legal framework for peacekeeping efforts of the CSTO member states, reviewed the additions to the draft CSTO Collective Security Strategy for the period until 2025 and exchanged views on the problems and the development of youth policy in the CSTO member states.