“The member states of the Collective Security conducted military exercises in the South Caucasus. In this regard, Georgia states that it is a threat to the entire region, Azerbaijan is indignant, the West is at least annoyed, and NATO Secretary General Rasmussen criticizes exercises for lack of transparency.”, notes Kavkasia,net in the article analyzing the military drills.
Exercises took place not only in Armenia, which is part of the CSTO, but also in the Nagorno-Karabakh, which, although is inhabited mostly by Armenians, is located on the territory of Azerbaijan. In addition, among 2000 people, who took part in military exercises, were partially representatives of the troops placed in South Ossetia and Abkhazia by Russia.
However, foreign observers are more interested in the fact how Russia transported its military planes, paratroopers, rockets and heavy artillery to the place of exercises, as it does not border either with Armenia, or with the Nagorno-Karabakh and Georgian airspace is closed for them.
The goal of the exercises remains unclear too. Though there is information that Moscow fears of terrorist attacks by the North clandestine groups. Some also believe that these exercises are some kind of allusion to the West, in case it decides to carry out a military operation against Iran.
