MOSCOW, February 9 (Itar-Tass) —— Russia hopes that air military exercises over the Pacific neutral waters did not seriously concern Japan, spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexander Lukashevich said on Thursday.
“On February 7-8, Russian warplanes, which are deployed in the Eastern Military District, had training flights over the Pacific neutral waters,” the Russian high-ranking diplomat recalled. “During the flights various tactical episodes were practiced seeking to improve the flight training of the pilots and make the actions of various types of aviation more coordinated. The flights were made strictly under the requirements of the international legislation and without violation of the air space of neighbouring countries,” Lukashevich noted.
“After the reforms in the Russian Armed Forces similar training exercises make an integral part of the combat training of the troops,” Lukashevich noted, adding that the exercises will be held according to the schedule in all military districts. “We put it straightforwardly and sincerely to our Japanese colleagues during the negotiations in Tokyo between Sergei Lavrov and Koichiro Gemba,” he said.
“We hope that similar exercises will not cause concerns of neither our Japanese colleagues nor neighbouring countries,” Lukashevich said. “The upkeep of combat capability is one of the main elements of any military strategy. The main thing is that this would be done according to international rules without any violations and any unnecessary aggressiveness,” the spokesman of the Russian Foreign Ministry underlined.