Documents agreed on the creation of a joint unit of the CSTO Radiation Chemical and Biological Protection and medical support

In Moscow at the CSTO Joint Staff representatives of defense ministries of CSTO member States held consultations on the establishment of the joint unit of the CSTO radiation chemical and biological protection and medical support. The event was aimed at developing common approaches to the creation of a new joint unit within the Organization and its normative legal confirmation.

The videoconference meeting was chaired by Lieutenant General Anatoly Yakovlev, Head of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) Planning Department - Deputy Head of the CSTO Troops (Collective Forces) Planning and Training Center. The representatives of defense agencies of the Republic of Armenia, Republic of Belarus, Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Russian Federation and Republic of Tajikistan participated in the meeting.

In his opening remarks, Lieutenant General Anatoly Yakovlev said that against the backdrop of the negative impact of the pandemic associated with the spread of the new coronavirus infection COVID-19, the need to consolidate our states efforts in countering the new global threat had never been greater. He noted that, in this connection, the availability of a capacity within the Organization capable of responding quickly and effectively to this kind of threat was becoming essential.

The joint unit is to be deployed on the territory of one of the CSTO member States in order to protect the force potential of the Organization and to create safe medical and biological conditions for its deployment and use, to ensure a collective response or in the event of large-scale and rapid spread of dangerous infectious diseases.

In the course of the consultations, draft documents prepared by the CSTO Joint Staff on the establishment of a joint unit of the CSTO radiation chemical and biological protection and medical support were reviewed and agreed upon. The documents were developed taking into account the experience of the Russian Ministry of Defense in the participation of the combined units of the radiation chemical and biological protection and medical support in measures to combat pandemics in Russia and abroad.

Work on the establishment of a joint unit of the radiation chemical and biological protection and medical support is carried out in the framework of the implementation of the Action Plan for the implementation of decisions of the CSTO Collective Security Council session, the implementation of priority areas proposed by the Republic of Tajikistan for the period of its presidency in the Organization, and the instructions of the CSTO Military Committee.