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 *** Document 14 of 25 for FBIS ***
 DOCN 000170876
 PDT_G R 1214392 MAY 95
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 UNCLAS 3I/FAX CISMIL BELA
 SERI SERIAL:  MM1205143995
 PASS PASS:    COPY TO
 COUN COUNTRY: BELARUS                                                       ?
 SUBJ SUSJ:    AIR DEFENSE COMMANDER ON COOPERATION WITH RUSSIA       i~pprov~dfor
 SOUR SOURCE:   MOSCOW KRASNAYA ZVEZDA IN RUSSIAN 12 MAY 95 P 2       ~       ~~y     ~
 TEXT TEXT:                                                                       ... .. ..,
 //((INTERVIEW WITH LIEUTENANT GENERAL VALERIY KOSTENKO, COMMANDER
 OF THE BELARUSIAN AIR DEFENSE FORCES, BY VALERIY KOVALEV; DATE,
 PLACE NOT GIVEN:  "RUSSIAN AND BELARUSIAN AIR DEFENSE:  YEAR OF
 COOPERATION" --- FIRST PARAGRAPH IS INTRODUCTION})
 ((FBIS TRANSLATED TEXT))  AS WE HAVE ALREADY REPORTED, DOCUMENTS
 ON THE CREATION Of' A UNIFIED AIR DEFENSE SYSTEM FOR CIS STATES WERE
 SIGNED AT THE ALMATY MEETING OF COMMONWEALTH HEADS OF STATE?AND
 GOVERNMENT 10 FEBRUARY .OF THIS YEAR.  IT IS NOT BEING BUILT IN A
 VACUUM - EARLIER ON A NUMBER OF STATES CONCLUDED BILATERAL
 AGREEMENTS ON COOPERATION BY ALERT FORCES AND AIR DEFENSE SXSTEMS.
 A TYPICAL EXAMPLE IS BELARUS, WITH WHICH RUSSIA SIGNED SUCH AN
 AGREEMENTT IN FEBRUARY 1994.  A STATUTE ON THE PROCEDURE AND
 000386411
 MECHANISMS OF THIS COOPERATION HAS BEEN SIGNED..  HOW HAS IT OPERATED
 DURING TAIS YEAR?  OUR CORRESPONDENT PUT IBIS QUESTION TO LIEUTENANT
 GENERAL VALERIY KOSTEN'KO, COMMANDER OF THE BELARUSL4N AIR DEFENSE
 FORCES.
 ((KOSTENKO))  UNDER THE AGREEMENT, IN THE EVENT OF A THREAT OR
 THE VIOLATION OF THE BORDER OF ONE OF THE STATES, THE ALERT FORCES
 AND SYSTEMS MUST IMMEDIATELY INFORM EACH OTHER.  WE HAVE ALREADY HAD
 SOME EXPERIENCE OF THIS.  TWO SPHERES OF AN UNKNOWN PURPOSE h'ERE
 DETECTED IN THE REPUBLIC'S AIRSPACE.  THEY WERE TRAVELING AT A SIGH
 ALTITUDE, AT VARYING SPEEDS, FROM THE DIRECTION OF OUR WESTERN
 NEIGHBORS.  h'E LOCATED THEM, AND LAUNCHED SOME FIGHTER AIRCRAFT TO
 FIND OUT WHAT THESE OBJECTS WERE.  THE SPHERES hTERE SMALL; THE BLIPS
 ON THE AIRPLANES' RADAR PERIODICALLY DISAPPEARED, AND THE DARKNESS
 MADE IT DIFFICULT TO MAKE OUT THE TARGETS VISUALLY.  IN SHORT, WE
 *HAD PLENTY OE 'TROUBLE WITH THESE "UFO's". BEFORE ESTABLISHING THAT
 THEY BOSED NO THREAT.  SINCE THE SPHERES ~it.RE FLYING IN THE
 DIRECTION OF RUSSIA, WE REPORTED THIS TO OUR RUSSIAN COLLEAGUES.  AS
 A RESULT, OUR NEIGHBORS AVOIDED HASSLE, SO TO SPEAK, AND DID NOT
 HAVE TO EXPEND MANPOWER AND RESOURCES.
 WE CONSTANTLY EXCHANGE RADAR AND AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SCHEDULE
 INFORMATION CONCERNING CIVILIAN AIRCRAFT CROSSING THE BELARUSIAN-
 RUSSIAN BORDER ALONG THE ESTABLISHED CORRIDOR.  THAT IS, WE MONITOR
 THE SECTIONS OF THE AIR STIPULATED IN~THE AGREEMENT.  WE COOPERATE A
 FORCE MAJEURE ARISES -- WHEN ASSISTANCE NEEDS TO BE GIVEN TO AN ,
 AIRCRAFT EXPERIENCING AN EMERGENCY, AND DURING SEARCH AND EMERGENCY
 RESCUE OPERATIONS.  THERE WAS A MEMORABLE TERRORIST ATTEMPT TO
 HIJACK AN AIRPLANE WHICH WAS FLYING ALONG THE SYKTYVKAR-ST.
 PETERSBURG-MINSK ROUTE.  WE OBTAINED INFORMATION ABOUT THIS FROM THE
 RUSSIAN AIR DEFENSE FORCES CENTRAL COMMAND POST.  THE NECESSARY
 MEASURES WERE URGENTLY IMPLEMENTED AT AIRFIELDS, AND THE AIR TRAFFIC
 CONTROL SERVICES, TAE KGB, AND THE REPUBLIC'S MINISTRY OF INTERNAL
 AFFAIRS WERE ALERTED.  THESE WERE CALLED OFF ONLY AFTt.R OUR RUSSIAN
 COLLEAGUES REPORTED THAT THE AIRPLANE HAD LANDED IN TALLINN AND THE
 HIJACKER HAD BEEN ARRESTED.
 ((KOVALEV)) 'FROM WHAT YOU ARE SAYING, VALERIY VLADIMIROVICH, YOU
 ARE SATISFIED WITH THE WAY THE AGREEMENT IS "WORKING."
 ((KOSTENKO))  CERTAINLY.  I ELABORATED TAE COOPERATION MECHANISM
 WITH COLONEL GENERAL PRUDNIKOV, COMM_~NDER IN CHIEF OF THE RUSSIAN
 AIR DEFENSE FORCES, WHOM I.CONSIDER TO BE MY MENTOR.  VIKTOR
 ALEKSEYEVICH USED TO BE COMMANDER OF THE MOSCOW DISTRICT AIR DEFENSE
 FORCES, AND I SERVED UNDER $IS COMMAND AS COMMANDER OF A COMBINED
 UNIT.  WE HAVE UNDERGONE THE SAME TRAINING, WE HAVE THE SAME~VIEWS
 AND ATTITUDES TOWARD SOLVING AIR DEFENSE TASKS.  IT HAS ALSO PROVED
 POSSIBLE TO MAINTAIN COMMUNICATIONS CHANNELS BETWEEN OUR COMMAND AND
 CONTROL FACILITIES.  DURING THE ELABORATION OF THE STATUTE, WE        .
 PROCEEDED FROM THE PREMISE THAT OUR STATES ARE FRIENDLY~AND
 FRATERNAL, AND OUR TASK IS TO ENSURE THE PROTECTION OF~THE AIR
 BORDERS TOGETHER.  COOPERATION IS ADVANTAGEOUS TO OUR COUNTRIES IN
 THE ECONOMIC SENSE TOO:  THE INFORMATION WHICH WE EXCHANGE IS
 EXPENSIVE:  IF IT. WERE NOT FOR COOPERATION THEN BOTH $ELARUS AND
 RUSSIA WOULD HAVE TO TAKE ADDITIONAL MEASURES TO REINFORCE THEIR
 AIRSPACE.
 ((KOVALEV))  THERE MUST BE SOME PROBLEMS TOO?
 ((KOST#NKO))  TALKS HAVE BEEN GOING ON FOR A LONG TIME ABOUT THE
 USE OF RUSSIAN TEST RANGES BY OUR MISSILEMEN FOR COMSAT FIRING.  THE
 TEST RANGE IN OUR REPUBLIC ONLY MAKES.IT POSSIBLE TO CARRY OUT REAL
 MISSILE LAUNCHES OF SHORT-RANGE MISSILES.  OFFICERS UP TO THE-LEVEL
 OF DIVISION COMMANDER HAVE NO EXPERIENCE OF COMBAT FIRING.  THREE OR
 FOUR VERSIONS OF THE AGREEMENT HAVE NOW BEEN EXAMINED, BUT EXPERTS
 CANNOT REACH AGREEMENT OVER THE PRICE.
 THE REPUBLIC'S AIR DEFENSE FORCES ARE EXPERIENCING DIFFICULTIES
 OVER RENEWING THE STOCK OF COMBAT HARDWARE, ?PROVIDING SPARE PARTS
 FOR IT, CONDUCTING. OPERATIONAL-TACTICAL REGULATION WORK, AND
 TRAINING CADRES., IT IS HARD FOR US TO GET BY HERE WIT$OUT RUSSIA'S
 SELF.  BUT IT WOULD BE TO RUSSIA'S ADVANTAGE TOO?IF OUR TROOPS WERE
 TA  f1FFF.R  ASSISTANCE  IN ENSURINI;  TAE.  PRATF:f TTr1N  ~1F  TRF  DTR  Rl1ATFAC  twt
 000386411
 TAE WESTERN OPERATIONAL AREA.
 THI5 REPORT MAY CONTAIN COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL.  COPYING AND
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 OWNERS.
 (ENDALL)  12  rSP,Y                       12/14502 MAY  WC 793
 BT
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