"Planning and decision making - staff matters - will be done during the first stage of the exercises," he said in an interview with RIA Novosti. "And the second stage will be practical actions at a test range in Kyrgyzstan near the Rybachy settlement on Issyk-kul Lake."
According the minister, fully equipped and armed units from a Kazakh battalion will take part in the exercises. The minister also noted that beginning with last month, in compliance with the approved system of rotation, Kazakhstan has commanded the collective forces.
Military units from Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan; operative groups of general staffs; representatives of the charter and working CSTO bodies; and observers from the CIS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (Russia, China, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan) will also be involved in the exercises.
The purpose of the exercises is to improve the cohesion of the echelon of command in preparing a joint operation to stabilize the situation in Central Asia, which is part of the CSTO area of responsibility.
The exercises will also establish control over the CSTO collective forces when localizing and destroying illegal armed formations and raise the level of readiness of the command when controlling the forces and means of member countries the fight against international terrorism.
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan are CSTO members.
