Russia, NATO to hold joint military drill late SeptemberSeptember 19, 2013 - 10:17 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Russia and NATO will hold joint military exercises in late September, the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) said, according to RIA Novosti. The readiness of the NRC’s air traffic monitoring system, the Cooperative Airspace Initiative (CAI), to detect and respond to aircraft hijacking will be tested during live drills dubbed “Vigilant Skies”, on September 23-27, the council said in a statement posted on its website earlier this month. The first part of the drills envisions the following scenario: a simulated ‘renegade’ civilian aircraft will take off in Poland and move in the direction of Russia’s westernmost exclave of Kaliningrad. Air traffic controllers in Warsaw and Moscow will jointly use the CAI system to identify the plane as a potential source of threat and send Russian and Polish fighters to intercept and escort the ‘renegade’ plane back to the airfield. The exercises’ second part will be held over the Black Sea. Turkish and Russian air traffic controllers and fighter jets will be engaged in joint work to identify, intercept and escort the renegade aircraft, and neutralize the potential threat from such a situation to population centers, the NRC’s statement said. The CAI covers three NRC regions: the geographic spaces between Norway and Russia, Poland and Russia, and between Turkey and Russia, with two central coordination centers located in Moscow and Warsaw. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Lemkin Institute petition seeks release of Armenians in Azerbaijan The Lemkin Institute is deeply concerned about the continued illegal detention of political prisoners from Karabakh in Azerbaijan. Armenian Catholicos calls for national unity against threats Karekin II issued a message on Republic Day marking the anniversary of the First Armenian Republic. Pashinyan: Armenia’s desired goal is “on the horizon” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that Armenia is moving forward “without interruption”. Opposition leader, supporters spend night at Sardarapat memorial Police made nearly 300 arrests the day before as Galstanyan and his supporters continued to demonstrate in Yerevan. |