STAVROPOL. Feb 26 (Interfax-AVN) - A command post exercise of Russian, Azerbaijani and Georgian border guards began in the town of Kaspiysk, Russia's internal republic of Dagestan, on Wednesday.
"The maneuvers are being held between February 26 and 28 and comprise three stages. The objective is to prepare a joint border operation for locating and eliminating sabotage, intelligence- gathering, bandit and other illegal armed formations on the border and adjacent areas in Dagestan," the press service of the North Caucasus regional border guard department told Interfax- Military News Agency.
Delegations from Azerbaijan and Georgia arrived in Dagestan on Tuesday. They are led by Major General Inayat Khalilov, chief- of-staff of the Azerbaijani National Border Guard Service, and Colonel Kornely Salia, chief-of-staff of the Georgian State Border Guard Department. Russia is represented by Lieutenant General Valery Putiv, acting chief of the North Caucasus regional department.
Border guard officials from Kazakhstan will take part in the exercise as observers.
"A meeting of the border guard delegation leaders and the chairman of the Dagestani State Council (government - Interfax- AVN) is scheduled for Wednesday," the press service said.
Colonel Viktor Rvachev, a member of the Russian delegation, told Interfax-AVN that "comprehensive check of readiness for the command post exercise, including radio interaction of the three border guard agencies," took place on Tuesday. Communication is stable and will allow all participants in the command post exercise to implement the plan of the training in full," he said.