Russia working on updated edition of Gulf collective security concept - Lavrov

Russia is working on an updated edition of the Collective Security Concept for the Persian Gulf and will soon present it to the parties concerned, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Friday after talks with his visiting Bahraini counterpart Abdullatif bin Rashid Alzayani, Tass news reports.

"For our part, we welcomed the process of normalizing the situation within the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC). We want this major mechanism to act in a coordinated matter, and this would include the issue of a wider discussion on ways of establishing collective security in the Gulf as a whole, I mean, with Iran’s participation," he noted. "Our friends are showing interest in our long-standing initiative: the Gulf collective security concept. Considering the recent developments, we are currently working on its updated edition and will soon be ready to share it with the interested parties."

Traditionally, Moscow has maintained friendly relations with all Gulf countries, being guided by the principles of equality and mutual respect. Russia began to work on a concept of collective security in the Gulf back in the 1990s when the geopolitical situation was absolutely different. The concept envisages a step-by-step progression, on the basis of equal cooperation between all regional countries and other sides concerned, to unblock conflict situations, foster trust and control measures, and ultimately forge a mechanism of collective security and cooperation in this sub-region.