The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia led military alliance, will hold exercises of joint air forces in October-November 2018, Chief of the Allied Staff of the CSTO, Colonel-General Anatoly Sidorov, told a news conference on Tuesday.
"This year we will hold the drills of joint air forces. This will be in October-November 2018. The location is the Central Asian region of collective security," Sidorov said.
During the drills, the forces will perform tasks on redeploying military contingents to other areas.
Now the CSTO is creating a joint control center, which will be tasked with planning the forces' redeployment. This year, the Combat Brotherhood exercise will be carried out in four CSTO member-states, he noted.
When asked about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Colonel-General Sidirov said that Armenia, as distinct from Nagorno-Karabakh, is a member of the CSTO, and as a result the CSTO has certain commitments to Yerevan. "Armenian citizens should be rest assured that in case of a threat, the CSTO will not leave them in danger," Sidorov added.
Colonel General Sidorov said that Armenia-Azerbaijan relations are quite tense, however they are not so tense that the two countries will "seize capital cities from each other."
Anatoly Sidorov stressed that the CSTO does not have the authority to intervene in a conflict without a request by the organization's member country which a party to this conflict.
source: commonspace.eu with Tass news agency
photo: CSTO focres on manoevres (archive picture)
