CSTO CONDUCTS EXERCISES IN ARMENIA
The exercises of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Rapid reaction Forces (RRF) in Armenia may be a milestone for the organization’s international recognition. The war games demonstrated that the CSTO has grown into a Russia-led military bloc, which is capable of anti-terror operations on the territories of its member countries as well as abroad.
From September 15 to 19, 2012, the CSTO RRF military exercises took place in the Bagramian testing ground not far from Yerevan, Armenia. Although scarcely advertised officially, the exercises marked a new stage in the CSTO’s development. The organization was established as a military bloc centered on Russia, intended to replace the Soviet Union as one of the modern world’s centers of military power. However, it currently has only six members. In addition to Russia, the CSTO comprises of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Armenia.
The motivations for participation vary among the members. For Russia, the CSTO is a means for retaining its former military importance in the former Soviet countries and beyond, and Russia has consequently been the member most interested in deepened cooperation. Armenia, in turn, uses the CSTO as an additional tool to train its military forces. In particular, during the latest CSTO war games a large quantity of Armenian heavy weaponry and vehicles, and Armenia-made drones, were used.
The recent war games in Armenia were not only the largest ones conducted by the CSTO since 2010. They were also the first exercise where all members of this bloc participated. Founded on the basis of a document signed in 1992, the organization’s original purpose was to conduct different peacekeeping operations on the territories of its member states, for which exercises were held near Astana, Kazakhstan, in October 2012. The CSTO was to protect its member states against external aggression but would abstain from intervening in their internal affairs. This was the principal reason why the CSTO did not interfere in Kyrgyzstan in 2010. The CSTO was registered with the United Nations in 1995.
A new stage of development started when the CSTO members decided to form the RRF in February 2009. These forces were to combat terrorism and to prevent technical catastrophes. The RRF is expected to be based on Russian territory, although according to Russian officials, their principal objective will be to counter the dangers CSTO members face in Central Asia due to the situation in Afghanistan and in Pakistan.
Most RRF exercises have been hosted by the smaller CSTO members, implying an interest among these states in the continued development of the forces. It has been reported that the RRF will eventually comprise about 15,000 troops, of which Russia will provide one airborne division and one airborne assault brigade. Kazakhstan will provide another brigade and the remaining CSTO members will provide one battalion each. At the initial stage of the RRF’s formation, the force will comprise of only one battalion from each of the seven members, which are intended to have a joint command and undergo joint training. In 2009, then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said these troops must present “a serious force,” be equipped with the most modern equipment and have a military potential on par with that of NATO forces. The formation of the RRF has not yet been completed, although its command has formally been appointed.
Three military exercises have been held since the decision to form the RRF, with the participation of all six CSTO members: Kobalt 2010 comprising of training for internal troops in Kazakhstan; Vzaimodeisvie 2010 in Russia for military troops; and the 2012 exercises in Armenia. In addition, the RRF has conducted several bilateral exercises, primarily in Central Asia.
The exercise in Armenia, comprising nearly two thousand participants, was the first in which both military and civilian personnel (police, emergency ministries etc) of the member countries were engaged. In addition, the International Red Cross Organization took part. The exercise was conducted according to an anti-terror scenario, which was considered important especially in the perspective of emerging threats to the Central Asian members and even more so given the existence of a nuclear power plant in Armenia. Yet, certain details of the scenario were related also to the situation in Syria and Libya.
According to analysts, the exercises were more important for Russia than for Armenia as they proved the capability of CSTO forces to provide a broader response to a terrorism scenario. In particular, the CSTO’s Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha emphasized that parts of the CSTO RRF are already used in operations in Central Asia. In sum, while the CSTO develops slowly and remains far less effective than its counterpart NATO, it is increasingly gaining recognition as an anti-terror organization in its own right.
