Joint military drills of Eurasian bloc kick off in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region

Joint military exercises of a Euroasian alliance kicked off Sunday in Russia’s Chelyabinsk Region, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

The opening ceremony for Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) drill was held at the Chebarkul training range, the ministry said in a statement.

“The main training event of the year begins today in the Russian Federation — the joint command-and-staff exercise Interaction-2026, as well as the special exercises Search and Echelon,” CSTO Chief of Joint Staff Col. Gen. Andrey Serdyukov said at the ceremony.

He said the drills would help improve the readiness of the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Forces to carry out their assigned tasks.

Central Military District representative Lt. Gen. Alexander Mashyanov said the forces “must be constantly ready to conduct joint operations” amid a complex military and political environment and regional instability.

The CSTO comprises Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan.