Belarus’ FM: CIS summit agenda includes highly systemic matters

The agenda of the upcoming meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council in Turkmenistan includes highly systemic matters, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Maxim Ryzhenkov told BelTA.

“At first glance, it might seem that the agenda for the current meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council is calm and routine. In reality, however, it includes highly systemic matters that primarily concern our countries, cause genuine concern, and prompt us to enhance our cooperation,” the minister said.

For instance, some of these issues pertain to cross-border and frontier cooperation. “There are a number of decisions and statements that create an even stronger foundation for the activities of our border guard services in various areas – from preventing cross-border crime to jointly combatting migration risks,” Maxim Ryzhenkov noted.

The Belarusian foreign minister pointed out that a large portion of agenda items is humanitarian, as it is humanitarian cooperation that creates the matrix of relations between states. These include joint educational, sports projects, and cooperation in healthcare. “Sectoral dialogues in these areas lay the foundation for people-to-people contacts between countries. They drive the entire complex of mutual relations. Consequently, significant attention is paid to these sectors on the agenda of our leaders’ meeting,” the minister stated.

The agenda also features pressing topics in security and responding to modern challenges related to information systems and artificial intelligence. Joint actions on information exchange are also on the table.

Furthermore, drafts for a whole series of political statements and decisions have been prepared, demonstrating a shared view among the CIS countries on various global issues facing the international community. “These range from preventing the glorification of Nazism and preserving historical memory to common approaches to strengthening cooperation on the international stage and building a multipolar and just world order,” Maxim Ryzhenkov stated.

Speaking about the CIS itself, the minister noted that the association holds a unique status. It is not a political, military-political, or economic organization with rigid frameworks and binding decisions. Instead, the CIS serves as a forum where countries with differing approaches to various issues can participate, ultimately finding ways to interact and advance cooperation across a wide range of areas. “Of course, within this organization, we try to smooth over rough edges. This is because the participating countries have quite diverse approaches and are under no strict obligations to follow a specific political or economic course. The main principle here is to do no harm,” the minister noted.

At the same time, Maxim Ryzhenkov emphasized that it can sometimes be difficult to coordinate certain decisions and statements. “The more diverse the membership, the harder it is to reach a compromise,” the foreign minister said. “However, unlike organizations with stricter membership rules, everything here happens in a more, shall we say, relaxed mode. A respectful one.”

As reported by BelTA, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko will pay a working visit to Turkmenistan on 8-9 October to attend a meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council. The leaders will discuss cooperation within the Commonwealth of Independent States, which marks its 35th anniversary in 2026. In his speech at the session, Aleksandr Lukashenko will outline the Belarusian side’s stance on pressing issues regarding the CIS activities, as well as the potential and future prospects of this international organization.

The meeting’s agenda features more than 15 items in total. These include social development and quality of life, CIS transport connectivity, joint efforts in the information space, law enforcement cooperation, and the preservation of historical memory.