MOSCOW, June 19 (AVN) - Russian Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff Anatoly Kvashnin ordered to transform the 1st separate airborne brigade within SFOR into the 22nd separate paratrooper regiment, Major General Alexander Popov, deputy airborne commander on peacekeeping forces, said on Tuesday.
The regiment will comprise 900 officers and enlisted men who are to continue accomplishing peacekeeping operations in the north-east of Bosnia. That is why Kvashnin issued a directive on transporting the personnel, arms and military equipment under the auspices of the brigade reform. In accordance with the directive, the brigade will be reformed in July. Its IFVs will be replaced by BTR-60 APCs and extra equipment will be taken away on trains.
Four military trains will be used to deliver 27 APCs to Bosnia and withdraw 60 IFVs. The first train is planning to leave Russia for Bosnia on July 6 to 13.
"The Airborne Staff has submitted the finalised schedule of those railway transportations to the main operations department of the General Staff which is to control implementation of Kvashnin's directive," Popov said.