CSTO to stage war games in Armenia next year

The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) will stage war games in Armenia in October 2011, Armenia’s National Security Council Secretary Arthur Baghdasaryan has said.

The decision was made in the framework of the CSTO summit held in Moscow on December 10 and was motivated by the fact that Armenia is one of the active participants in creating the rapid reaction forces of the CSTO, he added.

The CSTO has a 20,000-strong army of rapid reaction forces which include armed forces, police, national security and the subdivisions of the ministries of emergency situations of the CSTO member states.

"We were able to achieve progress in this context: the decision making rules and the rules of using rapid reaction subdivisions were clarified," Baghdasaryan said.

Further, he said that relevant amendments were introduced to the CSTO charter. These amendments will make it possible to facilitate the process of obtaining military equipments and armament within the CSTO member states.

It was also stated by the CSTO charter that the members states should, when necessary, support other CSTO members in case of military threat of aggression against any of them.

CSTO member states are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.