Kazakhstan: CSTO Military Exercises Scheduled for September

The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) will hold joint military exercises in Kazakhstan this year. The drills have been slated for September, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said.

Speaking at an enlarged Ministry of Defense meeting in Moscow, March 17, Serdyukov said Russia needs to counteract "a desire to establish US dominance in the world."

"In general, the analysis of the military-political situation suggests an increasing likelihood of armed conflict and its potential danger to our country," Russian news site Vesti quoted him as saying.

Separately, the China Daily reported that Russia and China will hold anti-terror drills in northeastern China later this year and that China will participate in military exercises with neighbors, without specifying when or where these exercises would take place.

In 2007, China took part in a multinational anti-terror drill with Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, the report added.

The CSTO includes Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.