YEKATERINBURG. Sept 3 (Interfax) - Service members of Russia's Central Military District have transported weapons and ammunition to high-mountainous positions as part of a Russian-Kazakh joint military exercise being held at the Kara-Khaak Range in the Western Sayan Mountains, the district's press service said on Friday.
"According to the exercise scenario, during aerial reconnaissance, Orlan-10 unmanned aerial vehicles spotted an illegal armed group that clandestinely infiltrated a country's territory," it said.
A mortar battery delivered a surprise strike upon a simulated enemy's forces from firing positions located in difficult-to-access rocky terrain, where the ammunition had to be delivered with the help of horses, it said.
"Mongolian horses carried 120-mm 2S12 Sani portable mortars, AGS-17 automatic grenade launchers, and ammunition to hard-to-reach firing positions. The horses carried loads weighing up to 100 kilos in hangers in areas where the use of other types of transport is limited or impossible to deliver ammunition and weapons," it said.
Russia and Kazakhstan are conducting a joint company-level tactical exercise on August 31 to September 4. It involves over 500 troops and about 150 items of military hardware.
The Central Military District is stationed in three federal districts and 29 constituent territories of Russia. It also includes a number of facilities outside of Russia, such as the 201st military base in Tajikistan, the joint military base in Kyrgyzstan, and units stationed in Kazakhstan. The district is headquartered in Yekaterinburg.