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Collective Rapid Deployment Forces begin exercise in Kyrgyzstan

A firing practice phase is planned for September 21

BISHKEK, September 19 (Itar-Tass) — The Collective Rapid Deployment Forces of collective security in the Central Asian region began joint tactical exercises in Kyrgyzstan on Monday, a Kyrgyz Defence Ministry source told Itar-Tass.

The exercises will take place at a base of the united training centre of Kyrgyzstan's Armed Forces till September 22. The CRDF in the training will conduct a special operation to destroy illegal armed groups.

A firing practice phase is planned for September 21. The military units will block the detected "enemy", hit the target with fire and pursue the "gunmen" until all of them are destroyed, the source said.

Military units from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan will conduct the training operation. Kyrgyz mountain riflemen, a special-purpose group, representatives from the united CSTO staff and an air force group from the Russian air base in Kant will participate in the exercise.

The training will be held to master mechanisms for the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces' command to take decisions to conduct special operations to destroy illegal armed groups, the system to control troops in fighting and skills to practically carry out combat tasks, the official said. According to the Kyrgyz Defence ministry, the main goal is to master coordination between control structures to prepare a counter-terrorist operation and work out common approaches to use the rapid deployment forces in case of an armed conflict.

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