Russia, Uzbekistan display high combat readiness in drills, military chief says

TERMEZ (TASS): Russian and Uzbek servicemen have demonstrated a high level of cohesion and combat readiness during the joint Yug-2021 (South-2021) technical drills held against the background of the aggravated situation in the Central Asian region, Chief of Russia’s General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov stated.

“Russian and Uzbek military units displayed a rather high level of combat training and cohesion of actions,” he noted, summing up the results of the active phase of the drills conducted in the Surxondaryo Region on the border with Afghanistan.

According to him, the drills achieved their goals. The general noted that Russia’s armed forces are ready to continue sharing their expertise in fighting illegal armed formations with their colleagues. The tactics of the Russian armed forces in eliminating “militants” during the drills were positively received by the Uzbek side, and it is planned to actively implement these methods during training.

The general also expressed confidence that such drills will continue to facilitate the strengthening of the mutual trust both between the Russian and Uzbek servicemen and the two countries in general. He noted that during the exercise troops displayed a readiness to counteract challenges and threats on the southern borders of the CIS. “Events like this will facilitate increasing the combat training of subdivisions and military units of Russia’s and Uzbekistan’s armed forces, boosting the interaction and development of consistent approaches to resolving the issues of fighting international terrorism,” he said.

According to the general, this will lead to the creation of a reliable defense potential capable of counteracting the modern challenges and security threats in Central Asia. At the end of the drills, the chief of staff awarded a number of distinguished servicemen.

In all, the drills involved about 1,500 servicemen of the two countries, up to 200 units of armaments, military and special equipment, as well as four Tu-22M3 planes of Russia’s aerospace forces.