Russia's foreign minister says "preliminary security measures" should be worked out before most NATO troops withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.



Sergei Lavrov made the comments to journalists on April 5 at a news conference after taking part in the Commonwealth of Independent Sates' (CIS) Foreign Ministers' Council in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent.



He said that such measures "would help us to avoid additional pressure from ongoing terrorist and drug-trafficking threats from Afghanistan."



Lavrov added that the issue is being examined by CIS countries and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).



He also said he held bilateral discussions on the future security situation in Central Asia with Uzbek President Islam Karimov.



Before the CIS ministers' meeting, the Russian Foreign Ministry said the agenda would also focus on humanitarian cooperation and the expansion of tourism.



Based on reporting by ITAR-TASS and Interfax