April 28. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russia was raising alert of its bases in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan amid attempts by the United States and its allies to restore its military presence in Central Asia, Ria Novosti reports.
"The United States and its allies, under the pretext of assistance in the fight against terrorism, are trying to restore their military presence in Central Asia. We understand NATO’s requests to deploy the military sites in the Region as a direct threat to the SCO stability," Shoigu said on Friday at a meeting of defence ministers of the SCO member states in New Delhi.
"So, we are forced to increase our military presence in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, as a counter-response to possible challenges," he added.
At the same time, Shoigu noted that "the NATO countries, following the results of their twenty-year presence on Afghan soil and subsequent rapid withdrawal, bear the greatest responsibility for the situation there." "They have to bear the main financial costs of post-conflict reconstruction," the Russian Defense Minister noted.
Comments (0)