Between 7th October and 10th October, Russian Armed Forces mission will carry out observation flights over SWITZERLAND, CZECH Republic and SLOVAKIA; while joint mission of Germany and the USA will carry out reciprocal observation flights over the territory of Russia. This was reported by the daily newspaper "Krasnaya Zvezda", referring to the National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, Sergei RYZHKOV.
“As part of the implementation of the Vienna document 2011 on confidence- and security-building measures, a Russian group of inspectors plans to inspect the area in the territory of SWITZERLAND. It will be carried out in order to determine the level of declared military activity or its absence within the area. The area of this territory is approximately 16 000 km2. During the inspection, Russian specialists will visit the training polygons, obtain information on military formations and units deployed in the area”- the publication says.
At the same time, the Russian group of inspectors plans to inspect the area in the Czech Republic. The area also has an area of approximately 16 000 km2. In addition, RUSSIA plans to carry out an observation flight from SLOVAKIA´s SLIAC airbase, under the "Open Skies" initiative with an An-30B aircraft over the territory of SLOVAKIA. The maximum range of this aircraft is 1170 km. “From 7th October to 11th October, in the framework of the implementation of the international 'OPEN SKIES' agreement, a joint mission from Germany and the United States shall conduct a reconnaissance flight over the territory of the Russian Federation with the Swedish observation aircraft SAAB 340B from KUBINKA airbase. During the flight on the pre-approved route, Russian specialists on board will check strict adherence to the agreed flight parameters and the use of pre-approved reconnaissance equipment”, he reported.
The "OPEN SKIES" Treaty is a multilateral agreement, signed in Helsinki on 24 March 1992 by representatives of 23 states belonging to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The agreement aims to work together to strengthen confidence between countries through sophisticated military control mechanisms and compliance with existing arms control agreements. More than 30 countries are parties to this agreement. The agreement allows them to fly over the territory of the Member States or to control military activity in accordance with the agreed observation quotas set out in the document. The Russian Federation ratified the Open Skies Agreement (OPEN SKIES) on 26 May 2001.