BISHKEK, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- The active stage of the joint anti-terrorism exercise "Issyk-Kul Anti-terror 2018" by member states of the Commonwealth of Independence States (CIS) has started in Kyrgyzstan, the Kyrgyz State Committee for National Security said Tuesday.
The special forces of the committee, the General Staff and the Ministry of Internal Affairs carried out a simulated anti-terrorist operation at the Issyk-Kul International Airport in the resort city of Cholpon-Ata in eastern Kyrgyzstan, the committee said in a news release.
During the operation, the security officers conducted the landing of a captured aircraft, the release of hostages and the destruction of collusion of terrorists, it said.
The joint exercise is scheduled to be conducted in three stages, in accordance with a program of cooperation of the CIS member states in combating terrorism and other violent manifestations of extremism for 2017-2019, the committee said.
The first stage of the drills started earlier this month with the participation of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan under the coordination of the Anti-terrorist Center of the CIS states.
The exercise includes identifying dropped tanks of international terrorist organizations, preventing and suppressing terrorist acts, and destroying channels for illicit arms.
The final stage of the exercise will be held on Sept. 26 at Kyrgyzstan's Edelweiss training ground, where the servicemen will block and destroy large illegal armed groups.
