Moscow Conference on International Security opens today

26 апреля 2017

The 6th Moscow Conference on International Security opened today. The annual forum brings together heads and experts of military departments, as well as leaders of international organizations such as the UN, OSCE, CIS, SCO, and CSTO. This year, more than 750 people fr om 85 countries take part in the conference. The main topic of the talks is combating international terrorism. Other issues on the agenda are the war in Ukraine, the problem of the Korean peninsula, and the turmoil in the Middle East, North Africa, and Afghanistan.

Russia's Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu has said today, that the spread of ISIS is not limited to Syria and Iraq. Armed groups in the vast territory from Libya to West Africa pledge their allegiance to the Islamic State. To a great extent, terrorists owe their success to the instability in Libya, wh ere the national statehood was destroyed by the collective efforts of the West. Today, this region requires close attention and support from political and military forces. The agenda of the 6th Conference also includes the issue of European security, since it is relevant in the context of the fight against international terrorism. A comprehensive and effective anti-terrorist strategy needs to be developed through joint efforts by all stakeholders, including Russia.

The Belarusian delegation was represented by Defence Minister Andrei Ravkov. In his speech, the Defence Minister touched upon the issue of European security, as well as the Belarusian-Russian military cooperation, in particular, with regard to the preparation for the joint strategic army exercise "West-2017".

Andrei Ravkov also stressed that is not a response to NATO threats, it's a way to conduct training for the Regional Forces Group that is being set up in the Union State of Russia and Belarus in the Western direction to prevent military aggression on the part of anyone. The army exercises pose no threat to anyone, they are defensive in nature, and the two countries are holding them in September.

The 6th Moscow Conference on International Security will last two days. Its goal is to strengthen international and regional security through negotiation.