TASHKENT(Sputnik) — The members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) are due to hold joint border drills in Kazakhstan by the end of the year, First Deputy Director of the Russian Federal Security Service Sergei Smirnov said Friday.
"A border operation will be held in Kazakhstan, all SCO countries are due to take part in it at the level of experts, border services and agencies," Smirnov told reporters.
The SCO is a political, economic and military alliance that includes Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The bloc's primary goals include strengthening mutual trust and good-neighborly relations among the members and encouraging effective cooperation in a wide range of areas, including countering terrorism among others.