Russia considers the situation in Central Asia stable despite existing security risks, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a regional security conference involving the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

Lavrov made the remarks at the conference on security in Central Asia and Afghanistan, according to Sputnik Uzbekistan.

“We appreciate the enormous contribution of the leaders of the countries in the region to creating all the necessary conditions for this,” Lavrov said.

The Russian foreign minister also warned that any country, including those in Central Asia, could become a target of what he described as Western geopolitical expansion and Western-organized “color revolutions.”

Lavrov further said that radical groups seek to use Afghanistan as a launchpad to extend security threats into Central Asia and Russia.