CSTO army exercise Interaction 2014 kicks off in Kazakhstan

MINSK KAZINFORM A regular joint exercise with the collective rapid response forces of the Collective Security Treaty Organization titled as Vzaimodeystviye 2014 (Interaction 2014) took its start in Spassk, Kazakhstan on 18 August, BelTA learnt from the united press center.

In his opening speech CSTO Deputy Secretary General Valery Semerikov noted that the exercise will be aimed at addressing a wide range of tasks on establishing control over the CSTO all-arms forces.

The exercise will gather about 3,000 personnel, about 200 military and special vehicles, some 30 jets and helicopters from the military units of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.

The exercise will be focused on the CSTO intention to prevent military conflicts both on the external borders of the Organization and inside its member states. The Interaction 2014 will be built upon a scenario which assumes an imaginary state Karania making part of the CSTO and an imaginary state Irtyshia that borders on Karania and suffers from a deep domestic policy crisis triggered by a separatist movement on the back of exacerbated interethnic clashes. In line with the CSTO charter, Karania addresses the Organization with a request for military assistance, BelTA reports.

The exercise will be over on 22 August.