Tuesday, March 26 2024 15:17

ArmInfo. The CSTO Secretary General Imangali Tasmagambetov said in an interview with RIA Novosti  that the cynical terrorist attack on "Crocus City Hall" was a clear "false flag operation", and such terrorist attacks challenged the CSTO member states to develop tools to counter this threat.

It is already clear that terrorism is used as a tool of hybrid warfare  aimed at creating inter-ethnic and inter-religious rifts in society,  and the international fight against it is complicated by the fact  that a number of international actors use terrorism for their  geopolitical interests.

Imangali Nurgaliyevich, on 22 March, a tragedy took place in "Crocus  City Hall" near Moscow, claiming the lives of a large number of  people. What is your assessment of these events?

The CSTO Secretariat deplored this cynical attack and strongly  condemned the actions of the terrorists.  There is no justification  for this kind of crime. I express my condolences to the families of  the victims and wish a speedy recovery to the injured. It is  important how quickly the special services worked, and the criminals  were apprehended in the first hours after the terrorist attack. We  are yet to learn details that will clarify the situation as a whole  and are likely to become an additional argument for strengthening the  security system in this part, above all the anti-terrorist component.

What has been the reaction of the member states of the organization?

  Firstly, the Belarusian special services actively assisted the  Russian ones in preventing the terrorists who had attacked "Crocus  City Hall" from travelling abroad. Secondly, the heads of all CSTO  member states expressed their condolences to the Russian people in  connection with the terrorist attack. President of the Republic of  Kazakhstan Kasym-Jomart Tokayev and President of the Republic of  Belarus Alexander Lukashenko were among the first to call Vladimir  Putin. Thus, the CSTO countries showed solidarity in condemning this  inhuman crime. In addition, the factor of common threats to the  member states of the organization, the collective fight against which  is the basis of allied relations, worked. Thus, after the terrorist  attack, Vladimir Putin and Emomali Rakhmon had a detailed  conversation about the prospects for the joint fight against  terrorism.

Experts point out that the format of the terrorist attack is not  quite ordinary. What makes it different, in your opinion?

Yes, the analysts of the organization came to almost the same  conclusion. Along with the scale of the terrorist attack, the  brutality and the short time span during which the crime was  committed, it should be noted that the perpetrators made no demands,  no one took responsibility for a long time, and when it happened, it  looked at least unconvincing. Obviously, this is not just a "false  flag operation", the situation is much more complicated and therefore  no less tragic. On the contrary, the lack of understanding of the  motives and the sharp actualization of the factor of inter-ethnic  relations is bringing additional tension in society. Of course, later  the results of the investigation will be presented, and we will be  able to judge the scale of the threat. Indeed, terrorism is acquiring  new features and is used as a tool of hybrid warfare, when it  provokes the growth of discontent with the actions of the  authorities, civil division, inter-ethnic and inter- religious  discord. Increasingly, this format of terrorist acts resembles  sabotage. This poses a challenge to all CSTO member states to develop  effective tools to counter this threat.

It is well known that terrorism cannot be defeated alone. Is this  confirmed by the organization's experience?

Yes, of course. Unfortunately, crises that are classified as  terrorist attacks periodically occur in the CSTO area of  responsibility - in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. In 2012, there was a  series of terrorist attacks in Belarus. Just on 24 March there was an  attack on a police station in Yerevan, which the Armenian authorities  classify as a terrorist attack. Of course, all these events are being  discussed in various bilateral and multilateral formats, including in  the CSTO, where there is a working group on terrorism and extremism  under the Committee of Secretaries of the CSTO Security Councils.  Terrorism is perceived as a common threat to the members of the  organization, so coordination here is carried out on an ongoing  basis.

Imangali Nurgaliyevich, is there any hope that countering terrorism  at the international level will become more effective in the future?

In general, improving the effectiveness of counter-terrorism policies  is a long-standing problem in international relations. Modern states,  unfortunately, are still unable to reach a common position on the  rejection of such methods of political and ideological struggle.  Thus, there is still no universally recognized definition of  terrorism, which makes it difficult to coordinate the actions of  national states in combating this phenomenon. The reasons are obvious  - a number of international actors use terrorism to realize their  geopolitical interests. However, with the emergence of a polycentric  world, it seems that additional opportunities will arise to develop  an international consensus within the framework of the anti-terrorist  agenda. For decades, there have been structures within the framework  of various regional organizations that deal with these very issues  and coordinate the efforts of states to combat a common evil. Let us  hope that these efforts will lead to a renewal of the international  counter-terrorism agenda and make policies in this area more  effective.