Training of Kazakh army men at U.K. military institutions eyed in Astana

ASTANA. July 1. KAZINFORM Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan Colonel-General Saken Zhasuzakov has met with General Sir Nicholas Houghton, Chief of the Defense Staff of the British Armed Forces, in Astana today, Kazinform has learnt from the Kazakh Defense Ministry's press service.

The Kazakh-British military cooperation has a long-standing tradition. The meeting of Philip Hammond, Secretary of State for Defense of the United Kingdom, and Defense Minister of Kazakhstan Adilbek Dzhaksybekov in February 2012 in Astana gave additional impulse to the development of military interaction between the defense authorities of the two countries.

Kazbrig peace-keeping unit training and further cooperation in the organization and holding of the Steppe Eagle military exercises that have been held in Kazakhstan annually for the last 10 years are the key directions in military cooperation between Kazakhstan and Great Britain. This year the Steppe Eagle exercises will be held on 10-23 August with the participation of military units from Kazakhstan, the U.S., the U.K., Italy, Germany, Lithuania, Switzerland, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine and Tajikistan.

During the meeting, Colonel-General Zhasuzakov and his British colleague Houghton mainly focused on the problems of military education and training of the Kazakh army men at the U.K. military institutions, namely Royal Military College of Science, Sandhurst Academy, etc.

Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan also expressed interest in the participation of the British companies in the KADEX defense expo in 2014.