RUSSIA MAY GET SUPPORT AFTER ALL

Kommersant

Sept 3 2008
Russia

Russia expects the Collective Security Treaty Organization to form a
common position on the events in South Ossetia in time for its summit
in Moscow, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev announced yesterday at a
meeting in Sochi with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan. Sargsyan is
among the CSTO leaders whom Russia is making efforts to sway before
they meet in the Russian capital on Friday. The foreign ministers of
the CTSO countries meet tomorrow.

"A significant number of our partners are ready to support the
peaceful steps of the Russian side," a Russian diplomatic source
said, "but we would like harsher condemnation of Georgia. So far,
it is reminiscent of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization option,
where they supported us in words, but supported the priority of
territorial integrity in the final declaration."

Moscow is pressing for the passage of a broad position piece on Friday
that will condemn Georgia and unambiguously stress the unacceptability
of the expansion of NATO on the borders of CSTO countries and the
placement of American missile defense elements in the zones of interest
of CSTO members. Russian diplomats are also hoping for support for
the idea of a European Security Treaty, which Medvedev introduced in
his new concept for Russian foreign policy in July.

The CSTO summit was to be held in Kyrgyzstan, but Russia asked that
it be allowed to host the event as an exception, due to the conflict
with Georgia. Russia will have a lot of convincing to do, since not
all CSTO members are eager to complicate their relations with the
West with such a position. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko
was the first to feel press on August 20.