Peaceful mission 2012 exercises underway in Tajikistan

On June 8th the Peaceful Mission-2012 exercises kicked off in Tajikistan within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) framework. The military units of Russia, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan will practice a joint anti-terrorist operation in the mountainous areas.

These exercises are the 6th in succession that the SCO countries are conducting, and their anti-terrorist nature is well-substantiated due to the fact that the threat of terrorism, especially in Central Asia, is very high, the Editor-in-Chief of the “National Defence” magazine Igor Korotchenko says.

"Terrorism may become dangerous for the SCO countries after Americans leave Afghanistan and instability and extremism may become large-scale. The joint drills of the armed forces of the SCO member-states will enable them to act effectively according to the earlier mapped out plans."

Russian will be the go-between language for the armed forces’ staff of the participating countries, taking into account the fact that the military translators of the CIS countries speak Russian fluently. And as regards the Chinese troops, military translators will be involved to ensure full operative compatibility

Motorized infantry and artillery units of Military Base No.201 that is deployed in Tajikistan and the warplanes from the Kant Air Base (Kyrgyzstan) will be involved on the Russian side, while Kazakhstan will provide a paratrooper brigade and combat aviation. Taking part on China’s side will be a motorized infantry company and an artillery unit, an alpine rifle company and a commando unit will arrive from Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan will be represented by a commando battalion and by a motorized rifle battalion. The military exercises will comprise 3 stages. The first will include consultations, the second will provide for the working out of a joint anti-terror operation in a mountainous area, and the third stage will include the operation itself. The second and third stages will be held on the training ground in Tajikistan. The military exercises of the SCO member-states, Peaceful Mission 2012, will continue until June 14.


Source: By the RIA Novosti News - 09 June 2012

Photo: Peaceful mission 2012 exercises underway in Tajikistan (Photo by http://i34.tinypic.com)

(6/9/2012)