ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
September 28, 2006 Thursday
CIS security services hold antiterror exercises in Armenia
by Vladimir Zainetdinov, Tigran Liloyan
Security services of the CIS and Collective Security Treaty
Organisation (CSTO) countries began on Thursday an active phase of
operative-strategic command and staff exercises Atom –
Antiterrror-2006 at the Armyanskaya nuclear power plant on Thursday.
The exercises are the sixth over six years of existence of the CIS
Antioterrorist Centre (ATC).
ATC chief Colonel-General Boris Mylnikov told ITAR-TASS that Atom –
Antiterror-2006 operative-strategic exercises were a drill of
planning and conducting the search to reveal and destroy sabotage
groups that infiltrated the territory of Armenia and seized a nuclear
power plant in the settlement of Metsamor located 40 kilometres from
the capital Yerevan.
Workers of the Armenian National Security Service and the Russian
Federal Security Service’s Special Task Centre will act as a
16-member terrorist group that secretly moves in Armenia. They are
searched for in different parts of the country, but still manage to
infiltrate the grounds of the nuclear power plant and seize a train
that moves its personnel.
Personnel are not just hostages to the terrorists, who want to force
the plant’s workers to act to criminal orders.
“These are the first exercises of this scale of anti-terrorist units
of CIS security services that are being held jointly with the allied
headquarters of the CSTO and Armenian army units that are a part of
the CSTO Collective Rapid Deployment Forces,” Mylnikov said.
The Armenian National Security Service and antiterrorist units of the
FSB Special Task Centre will play a main role in the exercises. When
“terrorists” are spotted, the Armenian army’s motorised infantry
battalion of the Collective Rapid Deployment Forces in the
Trans-Caucasus and two companies of special forces will go into
action. The exercises will also involve Mi-8 helicopter gunships and
Su-25 assault planes, Mylnikov said.
Special task units of the Armenian National Security Service and the
Russian Federal Security Service’s crack groups Vympel will free the
imaginary hostages.
Security services of the CIS countries except for Azerbaijan,
Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan take part in the exercises.