BISHKEK, November 3 (AVN) -- The Commonwealth's Southern Shield-99 command and staff exercise are to finish on Wednesday.
Russian Defence Minister Igor Sergeev is expected to come to the closing part.
Military commanders of Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan and a staff of Russia's Motorised Rifle Division 201, stationed in Tajikistan took part in the exercise.
A source in the Kyrgyz Defence Ministry told the Military News Agency that the exercise trained measures of spring advance against Islamic fundamentalists that have their fort-posts in Garmsk group of districts (Tajikistan).
On 22 August Uzbek and Tajik guerrillas (up to 2000 men) advanced Osh region (Kyrgyzstan) and forced five mountainous villages.
It took Kyrgyz national troops supported by Uzbek aviation two months to return these villages, but they did not manage to cut up the enemy forces: guerrillas left for Tajikistan to the districts on the Kyrgyz border controlled by Dushanbe.
The exercise is to be summed up in Tashkent; commanders are also expected to make a decision on final operation against Islamic terrorists.