Kazakhstan Monitoring 'Tough' Situation In Afghanistan - Deputy Defense Minister

Kazakhstan's Defense Ministry is monitoring the worsening security situation in Afghanistan in cooperation with other members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Deputy Defense Minister Timur Dandybayev said on Friday

NUR-SULTAN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th July, 2021) - Kazakhstan's Defense Ministry is monitoring the worsening security situation in Afghanistan in cooperation with other members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Deputy Defense Minister Timur Dandybayev said on Friday.

"The current military-political situation in Afghanistan is quite complicated. At this stage, it is difficult to make any forecasts, the ministry of defense of Kazakhstan is constantly updating information about the situation around Afghanistan, including in cooperation with the defense departments of foreign partners and regional organizations, " Dandybayev said during a press conference.

When asked whether the CSTO can intervene in the situation, the official responded that such an initiative requires certain conditions, including a relevant application by one of the parties of the intra-Afghan conflict to the CSTO headquarters, and the approval by the organization's parliament and security council.

The CSTO is a military alliance, comprising Russia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

In the meantime, the confrontation between the Afghan Armed Forces and the Taliban radical movement (banned in Russia) has escalated in the past weeks as the NATO troop withdrawal progresses under the US-Taliban agreement.

With Taliban militants taking over large parts of the Afghan-Tajik border under control, Afghan troops are reportedly fleeing to the neighboring Tajikistan.