Azerbaijan and Turkey Warn: Russia's Defense Construction Will Not Slow Down After the Ukraine Conflict

Putin Proposes Strengthening the CSTO, Proactively Responding to the "Turkic NATO" Formation Attempt

Image: Russian soldiers during joint military exercises of CSTO member states.

Vladimir Putin stated at the CSTO summit in Bishkek that Russia plans to launch a large-scale program to equip the CSTO armed forces with modern weapons.

Putin pointed out that Russia's focus will be on enhancing the combat readiness of CSTO forces and improving the command system. "Particular attention should be given to the development of the CSTO air force and air defense systems."

"One of the core priorities for Russia during its 2026 chairmanship of the CSTO will be to promote cooperation among member states and ensure the CSTO's technological leadership in the military field... We plan to deepen cooperation between defense industry enterprises of the countries."

Retired Colonel and military expert Viktor Litovkin believes that Putin's remarks are largely a response to recent meetings between Central Asian leaders and US President Donald Trump.

"We remember that Central Asian leaders praised Trump highly, and Kazakhstan's President Tokayev even called Trump 'a man sent by God.'

On the other hand, we have been supplying weapons to CSTO member states for a long time, at factory prices, including transportation costs and other expenses.

Therefore, from this perspective, this statement is not particularly special. However, times are changing, and weapons need to be updated. Therefore, we are preparing to provide these republics with more modern weapons — as Putin emphasized, these weapons have already been tested in today's battlefield."

"Is this a struggle for political and military influence?"

"Certainly. The President of Russia hopes these countries will rely on Russian weapon procurement rather than equipment from other countries. We cannot forget that countries that purchase our weapons will naturally be influenced politically by us. Obviously, Russia does not want to lose this influence.

In addition to arms supply, we will also send military instructors to these countries and train officers in our military academies. Clearly, we should not let the region's influence go to the US, China, or any other country."

"In the past thirty years, our influence in the region has been gradually declining."

"I would like to remind you that we have the 201st Military Base in Tajikistan. If we withdraw our troops from there, the Taliban forces will immediately penetrate into it, right? This is absolutely not what we want to see.

Evidently, we must closely monitor the dynamics in Central Asia — not only because the region is rich in rare earth resources and other mineral resources (from uranium to coal, natural gas, etc.), but also because it is our 'soft underbelly'. The Russian emperors throughout history have focused on expanding into this region, striving to consolidate influence and incorporate it into the territory, not because of a lack of native territory, but because the region could pose various security threats to us, which has been repeatedly confirmed in history."

Expert Mikhail Alexandrov believes that Putin's proposal aims to maintain Russia's influence among CSTO member states and encourage these countries to take interest in military cooperation with Russia.

"At the same time, we are also sending signals to these countries: the 'Russia is hostile to them' propaganda by the West is nonsense. This kind of hype is especially prominent in the case of Kazakhstan. The West claims that after the resolution of the Ukraine issue, Russia will take military action against Kazakhstan, which is completely contrary to the facts.

It should be noted that Kazakhstan has not rushed to join NATO, but has maintained an alliance relationship with us — despite some shortcomings in its policies regarding Russian residents in the country, it is by no means comparable to Ukraine. Therefore, these concerns are baseless, and Russia is proving its position through measures to enhance the military strength of its allies."

"What aspects might Putin's statements alarm?"

"If this statement targets a certain power, it is targeting Turkey and Azerbaijan — the two countries are currently trying to establish the 'Turkic Organization' (OTG).

They first started from the cultural sphere, then engaged in economic and trade cooperation, and now are continuously infusing military and political content into this organization, including holding joint military exercises and conducting weapons cooperation.

In other words, they are trying to pull Central Asian countries into this 'Turkic NATO' supported by the West. They hope that after the Ukraine situation stabilizes in a couple of years, they can use this organization to counter Russia.

Although Turkey itself is not eager to start a war with us, it is keen on rallying Central Asian countries for preparation. Moreover, they may not directly instigate an invasion, but could create destruction activities and infiltration incidents in the Turkic-speaking regions of Russia (such as Bashkortostan, Tatarstan) through their branches of terrorist organizations."

"Can our defense industry meet the weapon demands of these countries? And the supply price is unlikely to be the international market price, right?"

"This involves future planning. The war in Ukraine will eventually end in the foreseeable future, and our defense industry has already expanded production capacity. Then, either reduce the capacity or turn to the foreign market. Obviously, we still need to replenish the ammunition and weapon stocks consumed during the conflict — most of which are Soviet-era reserves. Without these reserves, it is hard to imagine where we would be now.

Of course, when we supply weapons to CSTO allies, we will not charge the international market price, but the domestic Russian price. Even so, the relevant companies can still make profits. Moreover, not all of our defense enterprises are private, and not all enterprises aim solely for profit."

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7578056672627720745/

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