Alexander Kurenkov. Archive photoMOSCOW, Aug 19 The CSTO member states must jointly ensure the security of the states and the region, including from natural and man-made disasters, said the head of the Russian Emergencies Ministry Alexander Kurenkov. «The CSTO member states are required taking coordinated and collective measures to ensure the security of our states and the region as a whole, including from natural and man-made disasters,» he said at a meeting of the Council of the CSTO member states on emergencies. Kurenkov noted that it may seem that the emergency departments are playing» secondary role» in the CSTO, but this is not the case. «We are well aware that any crisis, whether it be a military operation or a conflict within a state, entails the risk of large-scale man-made and humanitarian disasters that it will be difficult for one state to cope with,» he added. On Thursday, Moscow hosts the 13th meeting of the Coordinating Council for Emergency Situations of the CSTO member states with the participation of the heads of emergency departments Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia, Alexander Kurenkov, was elected chairman.
