Political analysts associate Caucasus exercises with Syrian conflict and crisis in Georgia

In the course of the regular military exercises in Northern Caucasus, soldiers and officers are practicing defensive tactics, explain Russian political analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot". Their Georgian counterparts associated the military exercises in Russia with the political crisis in Georgia.

On February 3, more than 3000 soldiers and officers started military exercises at training grounds in the Stavropol Territory, North Ossetia, and Chechnya.

The military exercises are of regular nature, notes Konstantin Sivkov, Doctor in Military Sciences, the president of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems. "It can be assumed that the participation of the Russian military forces in actions on the scale of an armed conflict or a local war is being trained," Konstantin Sivkov believes.

Since the Su-25SM attack aircraft and the "Iskander" operational-tactical ballistic missile system are involved in the military exercises, it can be concluded that the missile and air defence system is being tested, notes military political analyst Alexander Perendjiev. We are talking about the fight against drones, which was practiced in Syria, he added.

The military exercises in Southern Russia are a response to NATO exercises that take place throughout Eastern Europe, suggests Retired Colonel Teimuraz Tumanishvili, a founder of the NGO "Georgian-Caucasian Institute for Strategic Studies".

"Meanwhile, here they always act in several directions. The first direction is a response to the NATO exercises, while the second is focused on an unstable situation in Georgia itself: the opposition is hard on the heels of the government, and there is an agitation among members of the ruling party. In such a scenario, the military exercises in Northern Caucasus are, of course, a kind of hint implying: 'behave taking into account the opinion of your northern neighbour, who can decide on something serious," Teimuraz Tumanishvili said.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 5, 2020 at 02:29 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.