Media: Uzbekistan used Russian drones in exercises near the border of Afghanistan

The armed forces of Uzbekistan, within the framework of joint exercises with Russia, which took place near the border with Afghanistan, carried out aerial reconnaissance with the help of Russian-made drones.

“During the maneuvers, the military and employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan used Russian-made ZALA 421-16E drones, delivered earlier under an export contract. These devices are used for optical aerial reconnaissance,” RIA Novosti reported citing the information source.

The source said that “the development of high-tech drones, begun by the security forces and the military of Uzbekistan, will provide a new quality of reconnaissance and situational monitoring, including within the framework of practicing actions to combat illegal armed groups”. The source noted that these drones can process the information received on board, reducing the time for making decisions.

Against the background of the aggravation of the situation in Afghanistan, Uzbek and Russian military personnel conducted joint tactical exercises “South-2021”. The maneuvers took place in the Surkhandarya region.

In total, about 1.5 thousand servicemen of the two countries, up to 200 pieces of weapons, military and special equipment, four Tu-22M3 aircrafts of the Russian Aerospace Forces were involved in the exercise.

According to the results of the maneuvers, Chief of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov noted that Russian and Uzbek military formations showed a fairly high level of combat training and coordination of actions. He added that the RF Armed Forces are ready to continue to share with their colleagues the experience of fighting illegal armed groups.