DUSHANBE -- Foreign Ministers from a Russian-dominated regional security alliance held talks in Tajikistan's capital, Dushanbe, on April 2.
Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojidin Aslov told journalists after the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) meeting that Tajikistan had called on its partners to implement concrete measures to help increase security along its long border with Afghanistan.
The CSTO comprises the former Soviet republics of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.
Aslov said the ministers discussed the situation in Afghanistan and Dushanbe's steps to widen ties with its southern neighbor, as well as cooperation with international bodies such as the United Nations and joint efforts against terrorism, extremism, transnational crime, and cybercrime.
Afghanistan holds observer status in the CSTO.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov left international talks in Switzerland on Iran's nuclear program on April 1 to attend the CSTO meeting.
Lavrov met in Dushanbe with the current chairman of the OSCE, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic, on April 2.