Lavrov: Persian Gulf crisis poses threat to countries of Arabian  Peninsula,  Caspian Sea, South Caucasus, and Central Asia

ArmInfo.Threats in Eurasia are growing significantly, requiring additional efforts to neutralize them, as stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a meeting of the Council of the Parliamentary Assembly of the  Collective Security Treaty Organization in Moscow.

In his speech, the Russian minister emphasized the importance of  ensuring security across the Eurasian space, specifically within this  geopolitical territory, and its integration associations. "Anyone  closely following recent developments knows that threats in Eurasia  are growing significantly. This requires additional efforts from us.  Those who today seek global dominance by starting wars, killing  civilians, and intimidating entire nations are, of course, creating  ever new threats, including for our countries and our shared space,"  the Russian minister said.

In this context, he mentioned the instability surrounding  Afghanistan, where a difficult struggle continues against terrorism  and drug trafficking.

He then drew attention to the crisis in the Persian Gulf resulting  from the unprovoked aggression of the United States and Israel  against Iran, along with the escalating war in Lebanon and the  expanding military action against Syria, which is exacerbating the  tragedies of the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank.

According to him, a look at the geographical map shows that the  chances of creating a Palestinian state are diminishing. Official  statements from Israel are being made that such a state will never  exist, but rather that there will be a State of Israel with expanded  borders.

"This will not bypass our region. I have just returned from the  Antalya Diplomatic Forum. The speeches of Turkish President Recep  Tayyip Erdogan and other participants, as well as the questions  raised during my participation in this event, expressed serious  concern not only about the consequences of the Persian Gulf crisis  for the countries of the Arabian Peninsula, but also for the Caspian  Sea, the South Caucasus, and Central Asia. This region is  interconnected, and instability is "spilling over" from one part to  another," Lavrov said.

The Russian Foreign Minister added that there is no doubt that those  who are trying to maintain this chaos have as one of their primary  goals the deepening of divisions in the Islamic world. "This is  absolutely obvious. Our organization, which consists largely of our  Muslim colleagues, must take this into account in its practical  projects and programs. In the western direction, we see a persistent  escalation of the policy of amassing new armies for yet another  attempt to inflict a 'strategic defeat' on the Russian Federation.  The Republic of Belarus is also mentioned," the Russian top diplomat  stated.

He expressed his conviction that CSTO countries must pay attention to  such developments, including in their military planning, because the  crises observed along the perimeter of the CSTO's zone of  responsibility must not become the source of actual military action  that causes damage. "We must take preventive action and do everything  necessary to strengthen the military component of the Collective  Security Treaty Organization. This is our sacred duty. We must work  with our closest neighbors, partners from the CIS and SCO countries.  The SCO has a fairly serious program for strengthening stability and  security," he concluded.