DUSHANBE, June 2, Asia-Plus –The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) will hold command and staff drill, dubbed “Rubezh-2006” (Frontier) in the Aktau area of Kazakhstan in August this year.
This will be the third straight exercise held under the Rubezh codename within the framework of the organization and it will focus on dealing with a hypothetical terrorist attack.
The “Agenstvo Natsionalnykh Novostey” (ANN) news agency reports operational groups from the armed forces of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan as well as Kazakhstan’s power-wielding structures and sub-units of the CSTO Rapid Deployment Force for Central Asia will take part in the drill.
Tajikistan will be represented in the exercises by Tajik platoon from the CSTO Rapid Deployment Force for Central Asia.
According to RIA Novosti, the exercise in Kazakhstan”s western region on the Caspian Sea will be conducted in two stages. The first stage will target decision-making for deploying CSTO forces in Kazakhstan, whereas the second stage will provide joint practice for military units from various CSTO states.
The CSTO was founded in 2002 by Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan to ensure peace, preserve the territorial integrity of member countries, coordinate activities in the fight against terrorism, drug trafficking, and organized crime, and provide immediate military assistance to a CSTO member in the event of a military threat.
The CSTO has previously held Rubezh anti-terrorist exercises in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
