MOSCOW. April 10 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Navy's exercises in the Indian Ocean should not be viewed as a direct response to the U.S.-led war in Iraq.
This statement was made by Anatoly Kvashnin, chief-of-staff of the Russian Armed Forces, during a briefing on Thursday.
"We knew that the military operation in Iraq was inevitable and were aware of its possible timeframe. But the dispatch of the Navy's ships to the Indian Ocean should not be regarded as a direct reaction to the anti-Iraq coalition's military operation," he said.
"The General Staff, Defense Ministry and country's leaders must naturally foresee the situation, and this is what they did. We evaluate possible developments for the next 20 to 30 years, we make a detailed forecast for 10 years, and subsequently amend it every five years," the Russian military noted.
"Of course, we are keeping a close eye on the war in Iraq," Kvashnin said, stressing that the results of an assessment of this operation will be included in the Armed Forces' military documents.
He did not rule out that the war's assessments may also be taken into account in developing combat strategies.