Russian instructors will share with colleagues the practices of assault groups and UAVs based on their experience
The possible escalation of the situation in Central Asia on the eve of the September SCO summit and the presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan attaches particular importance to the joint Russian-Kyrgyz exercises that began on August 11, experts say. During the week, the military of the two countries will practice the elimination of illegal armed groups, assault operations, evacuation of the wounded and the use of drones in difficult mountainous conditions. According to experts, this will make it possible to stop the risks of destabilization and infiltration of gangs from Afghanistan into the region in advance.
Who is participating in the exercises in Kyrgyzstan
Units of the 201st Guards Military Base of the Central Military District arrived at the site of the Russian-Kyrgyz exercises on August 11. Automobile convoys covered more than 1.2 thousand km, and special equipment and heavy equipment were delivered by IL-76 military transport aircraft.
The Russian group was based on motorized rifle and reconnaissance units, calculations of attack drones of unmanned systems troops, as well as crews of Mi-8MTV transport and combat helicopters of the united Russian base stationed in the republic.
Photo: Central Military District Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
The joint exercises will last until Monday. Their active phase is scheduled for August 12-16. At this stage, the units will work out coordination and operations to eliminate illegal armed groups in the highlands. At the same time, Russian instructors will conduct a training course for colleagues: they will teach the nuances of the work of assault groups, the rules of tactical medical care and the effective use of UAVs in modern combat.
The maneuvers will culminate in the main stage on August 17, where the combined group will perform the final complex of military actions to block and destroy the enemy in difficult mountainous terrain.
The use of UAVs and their experience in mountain combat
The mountain ranges of different regions differ significantly in their structure and climate, so working out tasks in new locations is of particular value to units of special operations forces and assault groups, military expert Dmitry Kornev told Izvestia.
Fighting in the mountains is considered one of the most difficult types of combined arms combat. It requires fighters to have the highest physical endurance, special climbing equipment, and an understanding of high-altitude tactics.
Photo: Central Military District Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
— At the same time, the modern experience of a special military operation radically changes the approach to mountain warfare. The introduction of unmanned systems removes previous restrictions: if earlier it was extremely difficult to look over the pass without risking the lives of scouts, today UAVs give an accurate picture of the terrain, provide reconnaissance and allow you to maneuver fire both in height and range," he said.
A separate critical block of such exercises is medical support and evacuation. In high-altitude conditions, the nature of injuries is specific: the risk of fractures and barotrauma increases, and the terrain itself complicates transportation. Fighters and medics work out complex algorithms: the descent and ascent of the wounded using climbing equipment, the transfer of the injured to evacuation groups and interaction with army aviation in mountainous conditions, the expert added.
Threats to the destabilization of Central Asia
A high level of potential threats remains in Central Asia, which military exercises are focused on from year to year, both through the CSTO and the SCO, and within the framework of bilateral partnership, Andrey Grozin, head of the Central Asia Department at the Institute of CIS Countries, told Izvestia.
Photo: Central Military District Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
The main risks here are traditionally associated with possible breakthroughs of gangs and international terrorist organizations from the territory of Afghanistan. Kyrgyzstan has a difficult experience in this regard — the so–called Batken events of late summer and early autumn of 1999 and 2000. Then the militants of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (recognized in the Russian Federation as a terrorist organization and banned) and the irreconcilable Tajik opposition, based in Afghanistan, twice tried to break through Kyrgyzstan to Uzbekistan.
— Despite the fact that the number of attackers was small — no more than 150-200 people — they were well prepared for the mountain and guerrilla-terrorist war. At that time, they were able to inflict a number of sensitive local defeats on local security forces. Bishkek had to exert all available forces, deploy contingents to the south and use military and technical assistance from its allies - Moscow, Tashkent and Astana," he explained.
Since then, in Bishkek, under any government, the risks of repeating such scenarios have been taken extremely seriously. Kyrgyzstan is constantly increasing the level of mountain training of its special forces and ground forces, involving CSTO partners and other regional players in the maneuvers.
Photo: Central Military District Press Service
Image source: iz.ru
The current joint exercises with the Russian Armed Forces are a logical continuation of this long—term work. However, today the classic mountain tactical training is complemented by relevant combat experience: Russian instructors pass on to their Kyrgyz colleagues modern methods of assault operations, tactical medicine and, crucially, the practice of using unmanned aerial vehicles, without which protection of mountainous, wooded and inaccessible sections of the border is unthinkable today.
Border protection before the SCO summit and elections in Kyrgyzstan
The situation in the region may worsen on the eve of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit (to be held on August 31 - September 1), as well as the upcoming presidential elections in Kyrgyzstan in January, says Mars Sariev, a political scientist and expert on regional security. External forces interested in rocking the situation are capable of using internal political processes as a trigger for destabilization.
According to him, the regional architecture is changing, in particular due to the implementation of the large-scale China—Kyrgyzstan—Uzbekistan railway construction project. In this regard, anti-Chinese sentiments are artificially inflated, which destructive forces are trying to use as a lever of pressure.
Photo: RIA Novosti/Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Image source: iz.ru
— Religious radicalism remains the main battering ram for hypothetical destabilization. There are still "sleeper cells" of extremist organizations in Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. The risks are also reinforced by instability in the Afghan direction, in particular, the recent incidents in Badakhshan on the border of Afghanistan and Tajikistan, where militants attempted to seize regional centers, the expert recalled.
The exercises in the highlands are not just a practice of interaction, but a clear signal. On the eve of the SCO summit, where leaders of more than two dozen states are expected, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the security services of the participating countries are monitoring the situation in detail. The joint actions of Russia and Kyrgyzstan demonstrate that the allies are fully aware of the situation and are taking preventive measures to neutralize any terrorist and extremist threats.
Julia Leonova
