MINSK, June 23 (RIA Novosti) - Uzbekistan has lifted its moratorium on active work within the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a coalition of former Soviet republics, and is now a fully-fledged member of the organization, the Russian president said Friday.
Vladimir Putin, speaking at a meeting of the CSTO (Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan) in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, said: "We were pleased to receive a message from our Uzbek partners that they have lifted their moratorium on active work within our organization."
"We will therefore consider Uzbekistan to be a fully-fledged member of our organization from this moment onward, playing a valuable role in our discussions," Putin said.
