Translated material
Return to Crimea
Russian carrier-based aircraft will appear at the NITKA training ground
Russia and Ukraine are restoring full-scale and mutually beneficial military and military-technical cooperation. Such an optimistic result was summed up at the third meeting of the subcommittee on security issues of the Russian-Ukrainian interstate commission, which took place at the end of the week in the seaside village of Partenit in Crimea. This subcommittee is headed by the defense ministers of the two countries - Anatoly Serdyukov and Mikhail Yezhel. At the meeting, both sides demonstrated interest in expanding cooperation and contacts between military departments.The military ministers emphasized that a great contribution to ensuring stability and security in the Black Sea region and the Caucasus was made by the agreement to extend the stay of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine until 2042, with the possibility of extending this period for another five years. This agreement, we recall, was signed by the presidents of the two countries on April 21, 2010 in Kharkov. “Now we have to do large-scale work to establish constructive interaction between our fleets,” noted Russian Minister Anatoly Serdyukov. As previously announced, from 2011 the Russian-Ukrainian naval exercises "Fairway of Peace" will be held annually with the involvement of all components of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and the Ukrainian Navy. The Ministries of Defense of Russia and Ukraine also spoke out for the mutual participation of representatives of the armed forces of the two countries in the main activities of operational and combat training. In particular, it is planned to involve military personnel of the two armies to participate in exercises that will take place on the territory of one of the parties.
It seems that another long-standing problem in Russian-Ukrainian relations has been resolved: Russia in the coming years will use the NITKA aviation training ground - a ground-based test simulator for naval aviation - in the area of the city of Saki in Crimea for training Russian carrier-based aircraft. Although a similar simulator is already being built in Russia, coordination is underway with the Ukrainian side regarding the technical condition of the NITKA training ground, the procedure for setting prices and payments for the services provided. The NITKA simulator was given to Ukraine after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The complex was created in 1983 for training pilots of carrier-based aviation of the USSR Navy. The simulator at the Novofedorovka airfield simulates the deck of an aircraft carrier, on which carrier-based aircraft must land.
Negotiations were also held on military-technical cooperation. The Russians assured the Ukrainians of their desire to quickly establish mass production of An-70 military transport aircraft. “The Russian side is taking all necessary measures for the speedy completion of the development work stage and the transition to serial production and supply of aircraft,” said Anatoly Serdyukov. Currently, active work is underway on this project together with Ukraine. An-70 is a medium-range cargo operational-tactical military transport aircraft. It will replace the morally and physically obsolete An-12. The first flight of the An-70 took place on December 16, 1994 in Kyiv. The aircraft is designed for transporting cargo weighing up to 47 tons, landing parachutists and equipment.
The meeting participants believe that there are great prospects for the development of cooperation between military industry enterprises in Russia and Ukraine. The Russians propose to involve Ukrainian enterprises for the disposal of ammunition, weapons and military equipment of the Black Sea Fleet. It is planned to organize cooperation in the field of maintenance and repair of weapons and military equipment - the Russian OJSC Oboronprom will conclude relevant agreements with Ukrainian repair enterprises.
The Russian Defense Minister expressed confidence that the next meeting of the subcommittee, which will be held in Russia in the fourth quarter of this year, will also be held in the spirit of mutual partnership. Taking into account the internal political trends that prevailed in Ukraine after Viktor Yanukovych’s victory in the presidential elections, as well as taking into account the obvious economic benefits that Ukraine received in exchange for agreement on the Black Sea Fleet, there is almost no doubt about this.