MOSCOW. July 22 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian armed forces have held their first exercises to improve fuel supplies during combat operations, Anatoly Kvashnin, the armed forces chief-of- staff, announced on Tuesday.
He said at a Kremlin meeting that "fuel can be pumped directly from an operating pipeline, from any of its sections, without additional pumping stations."
"This saves a lot of money and ensures covert fuel supplies," Kvashnin said.
He told President Vladimir Putin that this method is being tested jointly with the Transneft company.
Kvashnin said that under the treaty on collective security with Belarus, exercises were conducted to transfer convoys to the pipeline near Orsha for supplying coalition troops with fuel.
"These exercises will radically change the methods of supplying the armed forces with fuel and lubricants, save money and guarantee covert operations," Kvashnin said.