Chief of the Joint Staff of the Collective Security Treaty Organization

The Chief of the Joint Staff (Russian: Начальник Объединенного штаба) is the official responsible for military cooperation of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) member states and the operations and training of the Collective Rapid Reaction Force. The position was established in 2003, and until 2012 it was simultaneously held by one of the chiefs of staff of the armed forces of CSTO member states. Since then it has been held by a dedicated officer.

The idea for a joint military staff originated at a Collective Security Council meeting of the heads of state of CSTO members in Minsk, Belarus, and codified in the Memorandum on enhancing the effectiveness of the Collective Security Treaty on 24 May 2000. This was further developed during 2001 and 2002. A proposal to create a Joint Staff of the CSTO was approved by the Council of Ministers of Defense on 19 November 2002. The Collective Security Council decided on 28 April 2003, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, that the Joint Staff would begin to be organized starting from 1 January 2004, in accordance with the Council of Ministers of Defense decision and Article 13 of the Charter of the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The first Chief of the Joint Staff was appointed on 28 April 2003.^[1]

The Joint Staff is a permanent body of the Collective Security Treaty Organization that is tasked with the implementation of decisions by the CSTO for military cooperation, such as the joint training of CSTO forces, and the use of the Collective Rapid Reaction Force, in coordination with the ministries of defense of the member states.^[2] It is led by the Chief of the Joint Staff, who is assisted by a first deputy chief, and multiple other deputy chiefs and assistant chiefs. Each of them oversees a section of the Joint Staff, which include the Center for Planning the Implementation and Preparation of the Collective Rapid Reaction Force, the Emergency Response Center, and directorates for technical cooperation, material-technical support, training, medical, and financial services.^[3] The Joint Staff is headquartered at the building in Moscow, Russia, that was previously used by the Warsaw Pact and the Staff for Military Cooperation of the CIS Member States.^[1]