On February 25, a press conference was held by the Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff Anatoly Sidorov "On the results of joint training of command and control bodies and formations of the assets of the CSTO collective security system for 2020 and tasks for 202

On February 25, 2021, a press conference by the Chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, Colonel-General Anatoly Sidorov, was held for the first time in the CSTO Crisis Response Center (Moscow). Representatives of defense departments and the media of the CSTO member states took part in the videoconferencing.

The press conference subject is: "The results of joint training of command and control bodies and formations of the assets of the CSTO collective security system for 2020 and tasks for 2021."

In the course of the press conference, the Chief of the Joint Staff assessed the military-political situation in the CSTO area of responsibility (Eastern European, Caucasian and Central Asian regions), reported about the main results of activities in 2020 and the tasks of command and control bodies and formations of the assets of the collective security in the year of the chairmanship of the Republic of Tajikistan in the CSTO.

The following information is on the materials of the press conference of the Chief of the Joint Staff of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, Colonel-General Anatoly Sidorov.

In implementing the priorities in the construction and development of the military component of the Organization in 2020, special attention was paid to the joint preparation of command and control bodies and formations of the assets of the collective security system to perform the earmarked tasks.

The Joint Training Plan defined a number of tasks to improve the cohesiveness of command and control bodies and units that make up the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces), improve the Troop (Collective Forces) command and control system and achieve interoperability of the assets of the Organization's collective security system.

Within the framework of joint trainings, it was continued to consider issues related to countering threats to the CSTO member states emanating from international terrorist and extremist organizations.

The main efforts were focused on:

improving the mechanisms for making and implementing collective decisions on the use of the assets of the CSTO collective security system and the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) command and control system;

increasing the level of practical skills of officials of command and control bodies in managing groupings of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) and the cohesiveness of actions of formations of the assets of the collective security system during joint (special, peacekeeping) operations;

conducting research on the most pressing issues of the development and use of the assets of the CSTO collective security system.

To implement tasks in these areas, a complex of joint trainings was planned, distributed across the regions of collective security.

Due to objective reasons related to the restrictions imposed in the member states of the Organization, the Joint Training Plan was adjusted. For this reason, the preparation of joint trainings itself was organized differently. Consultations, working meetings and negotiations were carried out remotely, via videoconferencing.

However, despite all these difficulties, the following were carried out with high quality:

strategic command and staff training of the Joint Staff, the Secretariat and task forces of the CSTO member states, in the course of which an algorithm for joint actions was developed to analyze the situation in the CSTO area of responsibility and make decisions on the use of the Organization's security component.

The training participants assessed the military-political and military-strategic situation in the Organization's area of responsibility, prepared proposals on the composition, operational deployment and use of the CSTO Collective Rapid Response Forces, as well as on the provision of military-technical assistance to the CSTO member state.

At the final stage, a set of draft decisions of the Collective Security Council, the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Defense Ministers and the Committee of Secretaries of Security Councils on issues related to the implementation of joint measures to resolve the crisis situation was developed.

special training with the assets of the Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics "Echelon-2020" on the territory of the Russian Federation. In the course of the training, under complex conditions of the desert and steppe area at high air temperatures, the issues of transporting military contingents, as well as the Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics of the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Forces during the preparation and conduct of a joint operation were practiced.

a command and staff training with the CSTO Peacekeeping Forces "Indestructible Brotherhood-2020" in the Republic of Belarus.

In 2020 the training was the most major event of joint operational and combat training, both in terms of the composition of the troops involved, and in terms of duration.

According to the training legend, as part of the post-conflict settlement, the CSTO peacekeeping contingent, having a UN Security Council resolution and the consent of the host country, was introduced into a simulated state in order to monitor the observance of the ceasefire agreements reached by the warring parties.

In cooperation with the militia (police) and rescue units, the peacekeepers worked out the tasks of assisting in the restoration of peaceful life, humanitarian assistance to the population of the affected territories.

For the first time in the practice of conducting trainings with the CSTO Peacekeeping Forces, the work of a peacekeeping mission was organized, which made it possible to work out a full range of measures to prepare and conduct a peacekeeping operation in the conflict zone.

In the course of the training, the peacekeeping mission coordinated the implementation of political, military, informational, social and legal and humanitarian measures taken to resolve the conflict.

Сommand and staff training with the CSTO CRRF Command on the territory of the Russian Federation

The main purpose of the event was to test the prospective structure of the CSTO CRRF control post, deployed on the basis of the command post of the Airborne Forces.

The training helped to improve the skills of officers in planning the use of multinational force groupings created in the CSTO format.

A distinctive feature of the trainings held in 2020 was the widespread use of software and information systems, both used standard and prospective, which allow to carry out operational calculations in a short time, make decisions on the use of troops, and subsequently control them. The experience of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation was widely used in the fight against terrorist groups on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic.

Thus, in the course of joint trainings in 2020:

- a wide range of tasks was worked out to improve the mechanisms for responding to crisis situations in the CSTO area of responsibility and to use the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) to resolve them;

- the officials who participated in the events as part of the command and control bodies of the Troops (Collective Forces) components got practice in preparing for joint operations, the units participating in joint trainings increased the level of coordination and field training of personnel;

- the readiness of the CSTO member states to jointly fulfill tasks and joint actions to neutralize threats to collective security was demonstrated.

The CSTO Collective Security Council highly appreciates the effectiveness of the joint trainings, which are one of the most important directions in the development of the military component of the Organization.

In the course of the meeting, held on December 2, 2020, chaired by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, in the final Declaration of the CSTO Collective Security Council, it was stated that the member states of the Organization would continue to improve the potential of the assets of the collective security system, taking into account the development of the military-political situation, and also joint work to improve the readiness of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) to solve earmarked tasks in the course of the regular joint operational and combat training activities.

In 2021, the practice of military trainings aimed at building up the Organization's defense potential, improving the combat training, cohesiveness and mobility of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) will continue. At the same time, the joint trainings of command and control bodies and formations of the assets of the collective security system, as in the past year, will be oriented towards the consideration of antiterrorist themes.

As part of solving a single operational and strategic task in 2021, a set of measures has been planned:

joint business game under the supervision of the CSTO Secretary General. In the course of its implementation, the CSTO Crisis Response Center, in cooperation with the operational groups of interested ministries and departments of states, will consider in detail the factors affecting the state of collective security, predict the development of the military-political and strategic situation in the collective security regions, determine the likelihood of crisis situations, as well as mechanisms of influence on them at all stages of origin and development;

the joint operational-strategic training "Combat Brotherhood-2021", which combines the training of various components of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces):

special training with the assets of reconnaissance "Search-2021";

special training with the assets of the Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics of the Troops (Collective Forces) of the CSTO "Echelon-2021";

joint training with the Collective Rapid Reaction Forces of the CSTO "Interaction-2021".

These trainings are planned to be held on the territory of the Republic of Tajikistan.

In the course of the trainings in the Central Asian region of collective security, the grouping of Troops (Collective Forces) will work out the tasks of preventing attempts to penetrate the territory of the member states of the Organization of militants of international terrorist organizations, blocking the channels for the transportation of weapons, ammunition and explosives, identifying and neutralizing the so-called “ sleeper cells", preparing terrorist acts, as well as other tasks of counter-terrorist struggle.

At the final stage of the joint operational-strategic training on the territory of the Russian Federation, a joint training with the CSTO Peacekeeping Forces "Indestructible Brotherhood-2021" is planned. In the course of it the issues of post-conflict peacebuilding in the crisis zone will be worked out by conducting a peacekeeping operation.

As part of improving the system of information interaction in the format of the Organization, a complex of joint trainings of the Crisis Response Center with the operational groups of the bodies authorized in the states to interact with the Crisis Response Center was planned.

The Joint Staff, together with the defense departments of the CSTO member states, is working on the option of organizing joint trainings in the context of possible restrictions similar to 2020.

In conclusion, I would like to draw your attention to the purely defensive in nature of military cooperation in the CSTO format, which was once again emphasized in the December statement of the heads of our states:

“The member states confirm that military cooperation within the framework of the CSTO is not directed against third countries and serves in the interests of guaranteeing the security of the member states of the Organization and stability in the entire Eurasian space. The CSTO member states intend to continue equipping the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Forces with modern weapons, military and special equipment to ensure their high combat readiness in order to effectively counter new challenges and threats. "