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Air defense troops to strike enemy missiles and drones in large-scale Urals drills

The excercise will involve over 10,000 troops and more than 1,100 items of military hardware

Air defence missile system is seen during drills Gavriil Grigorov/TASS

Air defence missile system is seen during drills

© Gavriil Grigorov/TASS

MOSCOW, March 5. /TASS/. Over 10,000 anti-aircraft gunners will practice fighting enemy cruise missiles and drones during drills in the Orenburg Region in the Urals, Central Military District Commander Colonel-General Alexander Lapin said on Thursday.

"The field exercise will take place at the Donguz training range in the Orenburg Region for the first time and involve over 10,000 troops and more than 1,100 items of military hardware," the commander said.

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The anti-aircraft gunners will hold a series of drills to fight cruise missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles, "employing a comprehensive system that consists of reconnaissance, command and control, surface-to-air missile fire, electronic warfare and aerosol countermeasures subsystems," he added.

The troops of the Central Military District are simultaneously conducting other field exercises at the training ranges in the Altai and Chelyabinsk Regions and on the territory of Tajikistan, the District’s press office said.

In September last year, the Donguz practice range was the scene of the Center-2019 strategic command and staff drills aimed at practicing military security measures in the Central Asian region. The maneuvers involved 128,000 troops, including military contingents from India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

The Central Military District is the largest in Russia. It is based on the territory of the Volga, Urals and Siberian integrated federal districts and 29 Russian regions. Structurally, the Central Military District also includes some overseas facilities: the 201st military base in Tajikistan, the Kant integrated military base in Kyrgyzstan and units stationed on the territory of Kazakhstan.

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