CSTO Secretary General Taalatbek Masadykov said the alliance is prepared to support Belarus through all available mechanisms if necessary.

Masadykov recalled that in June he visited sections of the Belarusian border with Poland and Lithuania, where he also met with the head of the republic’s State Border Committee. In his assessment, the situation along Belarus’s western borders is currently calm and remains under Minsk’s control.

He added that if circumstances require it, CSTO members are ready to take the collective measures provided for in the organization’s founding documents.

Masadykov also pointed to the continuing militarization of Europe and increasingly harsh rhetoric toward CSTO member states. He said such developments are particularly dangerous given the persistent lack of trust between the sides.

In June, NATO held large-scale military exercises near the borders of Russia and Belarus. Units from Lithuania, Poland and France took part, with the Suwalki Corridor among the key areas of the drills.

Later, Russian State Duma Defense Committee member Viktor Sobolev described the exercises as part of NATO’s preparations for war. He said alliance maneuvers are taking place almost continuously and also referred to statements by NATO representatives about readiness for confrontation by 2030.