Russian Defence Minister holds negotiations with his counterpart from Kazakhstan

Russian Defence Minister holds negotiations with his counterpart from Kazakhstan

The Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation Sergey Shoigu stated the improvement of the Unified Regional Air Defence System of Russia and Kazakhstan, as well as the developing military-technical cooperation between the two countries during his meeting with the Minister of Defence of Kazakhstan Ruslan Jaqsylyqov.

'A new treaty on the development of military co-operation defining the current areas of interaction between our ministries has entered into effect', recalled Shoigu. 'The key ones, of course, are the improvement of the Unified Regional Air Defence System of Russia and Kazakhstan, the military-technical cooperation, personnel training, operational and combat training activities', added the Minister.

In addition, Shoigu informed that a meeting of the the Council of Ministers of Defence of the member States of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), as well as a meeting of ministers of defence of Central Asia and Russia will be held on June 24. They will provide information on the progress of the Russian special operation in Ukraine, as well as on the situation in Central Asia.

'Everybody started to slowly forget about Afghanistan, but nothing has changed there. The situation remains quite tense and serious. All that our American counterparts have left there continues to degrade. All those risks we have been talking about are intensifying. It is the manifestation of international terrorism... it is the weaponry that have been left behind by the Americans in huge numbers and their distribution into the wrong hands', said the Minister.

Sergei Shoigu commended the cooperation with the counterparts from Kazakhstan, including within the CSTO, CIS and SCO.

'We commend the level reached in the cooperation with Kazakhstan both on bilateral basis, and within international formats and integration structures with the CSTO, CIS and SCO', said Shoigu.

He clarified that the Russian Defence Ministry considers Kazakhstan as the main strategic ally and the most important partner of Russia.

'On this basis, we form military cooperation that is the most important factor for maintaining stability in the Central Asian region', added Shoigu.

The military strategic cooperation programme of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan 2022-2024 is being successfully implemented, according to the Minister.

Sergey Shoigu has invited his counterpart from Kazakhstan Ruslan Jaqsylyqov to attend the Moscow Conference on Security and the ARMY forum that will be held in 2022.

'I would like to take this opportunity to invite the colleagues to the traditional events in August: the Moscow Conference on International Security, the International Army Games and the ARMY 2022 International Military-Technical Forum', said Shoigu.

Shoigu refers Russian testing ranges in Kazakhstan, where modern and advanced weapons and military equipment are tested, to the priorities for cooperation.

'We would like to gratefully acknowledge the work that our colleagues in Kazakhstan carry out to ensure that these testing grounds are operational, effective and beneficial, including for the security of our States', emphasised the Russian Defence Minister.