ARMENIA: CSTO SECRETARY DISCUSSES RAPID REACTION FORCES IN ARMENIA

Public Television of Armenia
March 2 2009

Secretary-General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization
(CSTO) Nikolay Bordyuzha has discussed setting up rapid reaction
forces with the Armenian president and defence minister in Yerevan.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan and Nikolay Bordyuzha of CSTO
discussed the legal issues stemming from the decisions passed in
Moscow on setting up the rapid reaction forces, Armenian Public TV
"Haylur" news reported at 1700 gmt 2 March.

Bordyuzha briefed Sargsyan on the work carried out by the CSTO
secretariat and experts on the subject. The CSTO chief also discussed
the issue with Armenian Defence Minister Seyran Ohanyan, the Public
TV said. Bordyuzha then was quoted by the Armenian Public TV as
saying that the CSTO rapid reaction forces will consist of two parts;
a military unit and a special unit.

Bordyuzha said that Russia will allocate an air-borne paratroopers
division and a fighter brigade to the military component of the rapid
reaction forces. He added that the military component will operate
in war time and border conflicts.

The special unit component will have specialist from special services
of law enforcement agencies to fight terrorism and drug trafficking. "I
hope that the rapid reaction forces will be set up by June and be
ready to operate," Bordyuzha was shown on Public TV as saying.