OREANDA-NEWS. September 24, 2008. The Russian Armed Forces began the Stability-2008 strategic command and staff exercises.

Stability-2008 will be held in accordance with the Russian Armed Forces combat training plan from September 22 to October 21 under the command of Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov.

Different federal executive bodies, such as the Interior Ministry, the Emergencies Ministry, the Justice Ministry, the Federal Penitentiary Service, the Federal Security Service and Ministry of Transport have developed a scenario of the exercises in cooperation with the Belarussian Defence Ministry.

The scenario of the strategic command staff exercises envisages to train the deployment of the Russian Armed Forces, combat missions of troops to localize and fight armed conflicts, terrorist activity, natural and technotronic disasters in order to provide strategic deterrence and security of the Russia-Belarus Union State.

The Stability-2008 exercises will have two stages. The scenario of the drill envisages a gradually deteriorating situation when crisis situations are growing into armed conflicts.

The Stability-2008 strategic command staff exercises involve military command bodies, troops and military commissariats from the Moscow and Far East military districts, the Baltic, Northern and Pacific Fleets, the 11th Air Force and Air Defence Army, the 16th and 37th Air Force Armies, the 32nd Air Defence Corps, the Strategic Missile Troops and the Space Troops, units and organisations of the RMD logistic forces, operative groups from the federal executive authorities, as well as military command bodies and units from the Belarussian Armed Forces.