OSCE states' military observers to visit airbase and air assault brigade in Kazakhstan

TALDYKORGAN, Kazakhstan, 27 October, 2009 - A team of 45 military officers from 24 OSCE participating States began a visit to an air assault brigade in Taldykorgan in south-east Kazakhstan today.

The visit is being carried out within the framework of the Vienna Document 1999 envisaging regular visits of the OSCE participating States' representatives to each other's airbases. The purpose of such visits is to share information, for example on the number of air sorties and the type of missions, to promote mutual trust and transparency.

At a welcome briefing organized by the Defence Ministry of Kazakhstan on 26 October in Almaty, Jeannette Kloetzer, Deputy Head of the OSCE Centre in Astana, said: "Military Information exchange being a key element of security in the OSCE region, the visit to the airbase and the air assault brigade in Taldykorgan is very important for Kazakhstan's commitments, in the confidence- and security-building field."

Bulat Sembinov, Kazakhstan's Deputy Defence Minister, added: "We understand that the forthcoming Chairmanship is not only a great honour, but also a great responsibility. It is no secret that there are certain contradictions in the field of 'hard security' within the OSCE. Aligning the positions of OSCE participating States will be one of the tasks of our Chairmanship in 2010."