Skala 2023, Special Exercise of Rescuers of the CSTO Countries, To Be Held in Belarus

Skala 2023, a special nuclear and radiation safety exercise involving rescue units of the CSTO Member States, will be held in Belarus on September 1–6. The exercise plans to practice nuclear accident response, according to Vadim Sinyavsky, Belarusian Minister of Emergency Situations.

Skala is built around a nuclear accident that involves the deployment of CSTO’s Emercom forces. The rescuers will also practice interacting with executive authorities and military administration.

“The goal of the exercise is to practice both emergency response and executive decision-making,” said Vadim Sinyavsky.

Belarusians were warned about the movement of special equipment of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Interior Ministry on the territory of Astravets district where the Belarusian nuclear power plant is located.

The purpose of the exercise is to improve the coordination of emergency response forces. According to the press service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, teams from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan are expected to participate.

On September 4, the exercise will practice an off-design nuclear accident at the Astravets Nuclear Power Plant, while on 5 September, the active phase of the exercise will be held at the branch of the Institute of Retraining and Advanced Training of the Civil Protection University of Emercom in the village of Svetlaya Roshcha in Borisov district.

As you may recall, on September 6, members of the Coordination Meeting of the Chairmen of the Committees (Commissions) on Defence and Security of the Parliaments of the CSTO Member States under the Council of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization will observe the joint training exercise Vzaimodeistvie 2023 with the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Force for the purpose of parliamentary monitoring of the military and political situation in the CSTO's Eastern European region of CSTO collective security and identifying the needs for improving the regulatory support of the CSTO Member States’ military security. The members will meet with the leaders and participants in the exercise and review the equipment and weapons of the personnel of the CSTO Collective Rapid Reaction Force.