Foreign and Military Affairs

Chinese PLA arrive in Kazakhstan for SCO drills

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-09-07 19:00

OTAR, Kazakhstan -- The first contingent of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) arrived in Otar in southern Kazakhstan early Tuesday to attend the anti-terror military drills held by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

The 320 Chinese soldiers were received by Chinese military officials who arrived earlier, staff with the joint command of the military exercises, and Kazakh military officials.

The Chinese soldiers departed last Tuesday on a train from Zhurihe, North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, where a PLA military training base is located.

They traveled 5,000 km in seven days before getting to venue of "Peace Mission 2010," which is the seventh series of exercises of such kind within the framework of the SCO.

With no rest from the long-haul trip, the Chinese soldiers started making preparations for the war games shortly after their arrival.

Four helicopters from the Chinese side that will take part in the drills also arrived in southern Kazakhstan on Tuesday morning.

About 5,000 troops from China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan will participate in the drills from September 9 to September 25.

Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of the General Staff of the PLA, will serve as chief commander of the 1,000 PLA troops, which include a ground force combat group, an air force combat group and a logistics group.