A three-day active phase of international antiterrorism exercise, dubbed Dushanbe-Anti-Terror 2017, involving military personnel, along with armored vehicles, artillery, and aviation, is beginning at the training grounds of Harbmaydon and Lohour in Tajikistan today.
The main purpose of the exercise is to rehearse coordination and interaction in missions to combat terrorist groups in mountains.
During the maneuvers, a combined force of ground forces supported by aircraft will hone their skills in combating terrorist groups, countering illegal armed units in mountainous areas along with peacekeeping operation elements.
Russia’s 201st military base in Tajikistan has reportedly been reinforced to perform these tasks. Mobile control points, units of long-range, military transport, tactical, army and unmanned aviation, special operation forces and airborne troops have been redeployed to the area where the drills are being held.
Russian authorities said on May 19 that Sukhoi Su-24M frontline bombers from the southern Urals and Mi-8 and Mi-24 military helicopters from the city of Novosibirsk, had been deployed to Tajikistan for the maneuvers.
Besides, Russia has sent Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile systems to Tajikistan for military drills, the first time Moscow has moved this type of missile to the Central Asian country.
Colonel General Vladimir Zarudnitsky, the commander of Russia's Central Military District troops, said on May 25 in the city of Yekaterinburg that the missile system will be used in the Dushanbe-Anti-Terror 2017 military maneuvers.
Dushanbe-Anti-Terror-2017 is the first exercise conducted by the CIS Anti-Terrorism Center with the involvement of the armed forces of the CIS member nations. Earlier reports said that the exercises would be held in May and June in six countries (Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan), with the final stage being held in Tajikistan.
The CIS Anti-Terrorism Center (CIS ATC) was established by the decision of the CIS Council of the Heads of State of June 21, 2000 and is a permanent specialized institution of the CIS. The CIS ATC provides coordination of activity of the CIS competent authorities in the sphere of combating international terrorism and other acts of extremism.
The legal status, main missions, functions, components and organizational basis of the CIS ATC activity are governed by the regulation on the Commonwealth of Independent States Anti-Terrorism Center approved by the decision of the CIS Council of Heads of State of December 1, 2000.
The Council of the Heads of Security Bodies and Special Services of the CIS member-states executes principal management of the Center's activity.
The CIS ATC is staffed on the coalition ground in accordance with the quota of posts envisaged by the Center's establishment. Today the CIS ATC's team includes the representatives of the national security agencies and special services, Internal Affairs and Defense Ministries of the Commonwealth member-states.
Russia routinely holds counterterrorism drills in Tajikistan, as well as in other countries across the former Soviet Union. In March, Russia and Tajikistan held bilateral counterterrorism drills, reported as involving 2,000 Russian military personnel and 50,000 Tajik troops.
