Belarus and Uzbekistan do not sign agreement on creating a joint rapid-reaction forceJune 15, 2009 - 11:22 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Belarus and Uzbekistan have not signed the agreement on creating a joint rapid-reaction force of Collective Security Treaty. Only five out of seven CSTO member states approved the document at the Moscow summit: Russia, Armenia, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Belarusian delegation has pulled out of Sunday's summit in protest against trade restrictions, in a so called "Milky war", and Uzbekistan expressed some concerns related to formation of military CSTO forces. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said in a note handed to the CSTO's secretariat that the country's non-participation "means the lack of approval from the Republic of Belarus of decisions being considered" at the summit, along with the foreign and defense ministers' meetings, and "consequently a lack of consensus for the taking of these decisions." Earlier, Russia banned imports of over 1,000 types of milk products from Belarus, a major item of its budget revenues, saying producers in the ex-Soviet republic had failed to comply with new Russian standards. Official Minsk blames Russia in undermining its economic security, and qualifies Russian's actions as direct economic discrimination. Belarus leadership immediately links their country's economic security with CSTO's collective security. The CSTO rotating presidency, which was expected to be assumed by Belarus, has been passed over to Russia for the time being. It was projected earlier, that Armenia would pass presidency to Belarus, Lenta.ru reports. The Russian president said that Minsk could join the CSTO summit's decisions later, adding that such a move would be welcomed. Top stories The Cabinet of Ministers decided on Thursday, November 9 to allocated AMD 120 million to arrange the gathering. Michael Roth believes sanctions must be put on the table after Baku‘s ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Yerevan City Council has elected Tigran Avniyan from the ruling Civil Contract as the mayor of the Armenian capital. The Armenian Parliament on Tuesday, October 3 voted to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Partner news | Narek Manasyan wins European Boxing Championships silver for Armenia Armenia’s Narek Manasyan (92kg) won Armenia’s second silver medal at the European Boxing Championships 2024 on April 28. Blinken urges Azerbaijan to continue negotiations with Armenia Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken has urged Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to continue negotiations with Armenia. Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. Azerbaijan must respect human rights, Scholz tells Aliyev German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called for greater respect for human rights in Azerbaijan. |