MOSCOW. June 10 (Interfax-AVN) - Russia and NATO are taking intensive efforts to form a team of officers who would be well aware of the military system, tactics, techniques and methods of each other, said General John Reith, the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, speaking at the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces on Friday.
He said that this is a historic breakthrough in relations between Russia and NATO that will help us regulate interoperability in operations and ensure permanent readiness of NATO and Russian forces to join efforts in military operations.
A NATO-led operative interoperability conference was held at the General Staff Academy during the week, with General Reith and U.S. Ambassador to Moscow Alexander Vershbow as key speakers.
A NATO report received by Interfax-Military News Agency of Friday reads that in framework of the cooperation, representatives of NATO headquarters and Allied Command Europe held a number of briefings to inform Russian leadership of the NATO led operations, the policy of the organization and the goals and results of the NATO-Russia operative interoperability programs. For instance, the alliance and Russia held 48 joint interoperability events in 2004. A great number of exercises, working meeting and seminars on the subject were held by Russia with NATO members on a bilateral basis.
These bilateral events included special operations exercise with live firing, a military transport aviation exercise and a strategic communications exercise. Moreover, NATO officers visited Sevastopol recently where they held a number of working meetings with the Russian Black Sea Fleet's officials to facilitate Russia's future involvement in Operation Active Endeavor.
Allied Command Europe together with the Russian Land Forces' 15th brigade is now actively refining interoperability skills in peacekeeping operations.
In October this year, the Military Academy of the General Staff will send a mobile task force of instructors to the NATO school in Oberammergau, Germany, to hold a series of briefings for NATO officers on security issues in Russia, as well as on military organization, principal procedures and other issues relevant to operative interoperability of forces. The next task force of instructors from NATO will come to Russia in 2006, the alliance's information bureau reports.