Ekaterinburg. July 20. INTERFAX-A joint military exercise of the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan will be held in the area bordering Afghanistan from July 30 to August 10, the press service of the Central Military District (CVO) reported on Tuesday.
"About 1.5 thousand servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and Uzbekistan will take part in a joint exercise that will be held from July 30 to August 10 in the Surkhandarya region of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The exercises will be held at the Termez training ground in the area bordering Afghanistan, with the involvement of about 200 units of military equipment, including aviation, " the report says.
Within the framework of the exercise, the military personnel will work out issues of ensuring the territorial integrity of the states of the Central Asian region with a joint group of troops. The basis of the Russian contingent will be made up of military personnel of the peacekeeping compound and the special purpose brigade of the Central Military District, the Central Military District clarifies.
Earlier it was reported that from August 5 to 10, a joint exercise of servicemen of Russia, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan will also be held at the Harb-Maydon training ground in the Khatlon region of Tajikistan, where the Russian side will be represented by units of the 201st military base.
The United States and its allies must withdraw their troops from Afghanistan by September 11 this year. The withdrawal of troops takes place against the background of the activation of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan (a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation). Since May, the Taliban have been conducting a large-scale offensive and pushing back government forces.
According to media reports, the Taliban control more than 100 districts. It was also reported that groups of soldiers of the Afghan government forces are crossing into the territory of Tajikistan under the onslaught of the Taliban.
After the collapse of the USSR, the Tajik-Afghan border was guarded by Russian border guards. In 2005, the border protection was completely transferred to the jurisdiction of the State Border Protection Committee of Tajikistan, Russian border guards were withdrawn from Tajikistan. The border department of the FSB of the Russian Federation in Tajikistan was transformed into an operational border group without a military component.
The 201st Russian military base operates in Tajikistan. This is the largest military facility of Russia outside its borders. It is located in two cities - Dushanbe and Bokhtar. The base consists of motorized rifle, tank, artillery, reconnaissance units, air defense units, RCBZ and communications.
In 2020, the base received about 20 units of new and modernized equipment, including Mi-8-MTV5-1 transport and combat helicopters, upgraded BMP-2M infantry fighting vehicles, the press service of the Central Military District reported in January.