TVER, April 6. /TASS/. Russia and Belarus have completed the formation of their joint air defense system in the Eastern European region of collective security, Chief of the General Staff - First Deputy Commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces Lieutenant General Pavel Kurachenko told reporters on Wednesday.
"The agreement’s implementation has been completed, and the further efforts will be focused on joint combat air defense duty and joint operational and combat training activities," he said.
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Kurachenko recalled that the agreement between Russia and Belarus on the joint protection of the external border of the Union State in the airspace and the creation of the joint regional system was signed and ratified in 2009.
Commander of the Belarusian Air Force and Air Defense, Major General Oleg Dvigalev has been appointed for the post of commander of the joint regional air defense system.
The defense ministers of Russian Belarus have approved the list of the military administration bodies, command and control centers, forces, formations and military units assigned to the joint regional air defense system, as well as instructions for the organization and performance of the air defense combat duty within the joint regional system.
Kurachenko said that it is also planned to create joint regional air defense system with Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. "The draft agreements on the establishment of the joint regional air defense system of the Russian Federation with the Kyrgyz Republic, as well as between Russia and Tajikistan have been developed and are at the stage of approval," he said.
Referring to the creation of the Central Asian Region of Collective Security, Kurachenko said that a similar agreement was signed between Russia and Kazakhstan in 2013. According to him, the work is currently underway on the coordination of the list of the bodies of military administration, command and control centers, forces, formations and military units assigned to the joint regional air defense system.