Two Ulyanovsk airborne squadrons to be airlifted to Kyrgyz airbase.

30/4 Tass 207

MOSCOW, April 30 (Itar-Tass) -- The paratroopers will be rotated at
the Russian airbase in Kyrgyzstan's Kant, spokesman for the Russian
Airborne Troops Col. Alexander Cherednik told Itar-Tass on Friday. The
paratroopers were urgently airlifted to the airbase on April 8 to ensure
security of the families of Russian servicemen and to tighten security of
Russian military facilities in the republic.
"A military transport airplane Il-76 is airlifting two Ulyanovsk
airborne squadrons (from the 31st airborne attack brigade - Itar-Tass) to
the airbase in Kant. All these 160 Russian contract paratroopers passed
the additional training," he said.
"The same airplane will bring back to their Russian base the
paratroopers, who ensure security at the airbase and other Russian
facilities in Kyrgyzstan within 20 days," the Airborne Troops spokesman
added.
"Our military facilities, including the airbase in Kant, performed
their mission. The situation is calm and stable. No provocative acts and
attacks were reported. Therefore, the evacuation of the families of
Russian servicemen is out of question," Commander of the Russian Airborne
Troops Lieut. Gen. Vladimir Shamanov told Itar-Tass earlier.
The commander noted that a concrete mission deadline was not set for
Russian paratroopers. "They will stay in Kyrgyzstan as long as necessary
and will be brought back, when the situation in the republic stabilizes,"
the commander pointed out.
According to the Russian Armed Forces General Staff, about 150 Russian
paratroopers were urgently airlifted to Kyrgyzstan on April 8 a day after
the massive riots had broken out in the country. They went on their combat
mission to ensure security of three Russian military facilities - the
airbase in Kant, the naval communication station Marevo in the Chui Region
and a testing range of naval craft on the Issyk-Kul Lake. "The Russian
paratroopers were also ordered to ensure security of the families of
Russian servicemen and evacuate them from Kyrgyzstan in case of further
escalation of tensions in the country and a looming threat to their
lives," the source in the Russian General Staff said.
"The Russian president ordered to airlift two airborne squadrons with
the numerical strength of 150 paratroopers to the Kant airbase in order to
ensure security of the families of Russian servicemen," Chief of the
Russian General Staff Gen. Nikolai Makarov told Itar-Tass in Prague on
April 8.
The Russian paratroopers were airlifted to Kyrgyzstan just with the
firearms - submachine guns, machine guns and sniper rifles, a reliable
source in the Russian General Staff told Itar-Tass.
-0-baz/kud


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