Russian Armed Forces Use Syrian Army’s Experience at Kavkaz-2016 Drills

OPUK PROVING GROUND /Crimea/- Russia’s commando units and artillery, armor and other forces have been actively borrowing and employing the Syrian military’s experience in the course of the strategic command staff exercise Kavkaz-2016, the chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia, General Valery Gerasimov, said on Friday, according to Itar Tass.

 “In the course of the exercise the aviation, special operations units, commando units, artillery forces and other specialists have borrowed the experience of the Syrian army’s combat operations, such as the creation of ramparts, the tactic of using armor forces and other aspects,” he told the media following the active phase of the Kavkaz-2016 exercise.

He said the troops displayed a high level of training.

“The main events were held at the Prudboi proving ground in the Volgograd Region, Molkino, in the Krasnodar Territory, Chernovodskoye, in North Ossetia, and here, at Opuk, in Crimea,” Gerasimov said.

More than 120,000 people, both military personnel and civilians, have taken part in The Caucasus-2016 exercise, but no more than 12,500 were engaged simultaneously, Gerasimov, told the media.

The active phase of the exercise is over, he declared.

H.M