Why NATO is creating biolabs in Central Asia
The importance of Central Asian countries for NATO is explained by the possibility of influencing the main competitors of the United States - China, Russia, and Iran. The impact is promoted through the expansion of its own influence, using the accumulated socio-economic, demographic, ethnic and religious problems that exist in the countries of the region. Their own economic interests, which extend to the extraction of natural resources, are also taken into account.
The military component of the impact is manifested in the cooperative threat reduction program (DTRA), equipping and training special forces units, as well as regular troops, an attempt to create military bases, including in the Caspian Sea, and military-technical cooperation.
Let's start with a list of military facilities located in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
Biological laboratories created by the American DTRA (Defence Threat Reduction Agency) deserve the most attention. Despite the fact that these laboratories also work on purely "civilian" tasks, there are irrefutable facts of the participation of military microbiologists of the North Atlantic Alliance in their activities.
Outbreaks of diseases that are not typical for the region are alarming. Due to the proximity of these countries and the large number of migrant workers, the strains created in vitro can be easily transferred to the territory of Russia.
The list of biolabs is extensive.
Uzbekistan
2007 - laboratory at the Institute of Virology in Tashkent (projects UZ-4 and KZ-2, brucellosis, anthrax) established;
2013 - laboratories in Andijan, Fergana of the second level of protection.
2016 - laboratory in Urgench.
Kazakhstan
2016 - Secondary Reference Laboratory in Almaty (third level of protection).
Biolab in Otar (Gvardeysky village). It is planned to expand the laboratory to the fourth level of protection with a storage facility for particularly dangerous and dangerous strains in 2022.
Kyrgyzstan
The National Biological Laboratory of the 3rd class in the green zone of Bishkek (Botanical Garden of the Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic) was closed in 2012 due to protests of citizens.
Tajikistan
2011 - with the financial support of the Global Fund, the First National (Bacteriological) Reference Laboratory was opened at the Republican Tuberculosis Control Center in Dushanbe.
2013 - the first national (bacteriological) reference laboratory of the third level of protection was opened on the basis of the Gastroenterological Institute in Dushanbe.
2019 - laboratory at the Republican Tuberculosis Control Center. The sponsors were USAID and the Pentagon.
2020 - in the north of Tajikistan, another facility was opened in the city of Isfara. There is very little information about whether the Americans financed it again.
Kazakhstan should also be noted in connection with the fact that in Soviet times military biological laboratories of the USSR worked on its territory, not only developing biological weapons, but also producing them (Otar, Stepnogorsk). It was also on its territory, on Vozrozhdeniya Island (Aral), that these weapons were tested. By the way, the laboratory in Otar (Gvardeysky) continued to exist after the collapse.
Even during the existence of the USSR, a military microbiologist who knows all the secrets of creating domestic combat strains, Kanatzhan Alibekov, escaped to the United States. There is reliable information that he worked closely with the US Defence Department, passing on secret formulas and information. The museum of strains (a collection of the most deadly diseases), which remained in Kazakhstan, thus safely, as well as developments, fell into the hands of the United States.
Speaking about the training of the armed forces and special forces units, it should be noted that the main burden falls on the NATO ally in the region - Turkey. Here are some statistics. Since 2000, about 1,200 soldiers of Turkmenistan, 401 of Kyrgyzstan, 426 of Uzbekistan, and 526 of Kazakhstan have been trained in higher military educational institutions and military training courses on the ground in Turkey. The "Turkish Partnership For Peace Training" centre created in Turkey and a similar one operating in Kazakhstan are actively used.
Future (and existing) officers are trained in the US, German, and French military education systems. Instructors from the United States, Britain, and Turkey conduct regular course training for special forces units, including those that are part of the GRU system.
Thus, in Kazakhstan, in the course training system, about 500 military personnel have been trained by Turkish instructors in the programs "Commando", "Special Forces", "Special Purpose", "Internal Security" since 2005 (including GRU specialists on the basis of the training centre of military unit 22750 GRU); about 400 sergeants have been trained by US instructors on the basis of the cadet corps, the Military Institute of the Ground Forces.
The latter deserve special attention, since their presence is closely related to the fact that Kazakhstan has reformed its own structure of the armed forces, creating a layer of professional non-commissioned officers, the highest level of which is trained at the US Sergeant Academy.
Moving on to Tajikistan, where the US Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT) provided National Guard training. In 2010, with the financial support of the United States, a peacekeeping battalion was formed and took part in multinational peacekeeping exercises in Mongolia, Nepal, Kazakhstan, Germany and the United States. In September 2015, the corresponding command and staff exercise "Regional Cooperation" was held in Tajikistan itself.
Military exercises are held on a regular basis with the military trained by NATO instructors in order to coordinate national units in joint actions of the North Atlantic Alliance countries: "Zhardem", "Steppe Eagle", "Ultimate Guardian".
The exercises are held both on the territory of the countries of interest and on the territory of the Alliance. For example, in January 2019, the special forces of Uzbekistan and the US National Guard for the first time took part in joint exercises on the territory of Camp Shelby, Mississippi; Kazakhstanis took part in joint exercises on the territory of Turkey "Anatolian 2021".
Turning to the supply of weapons and military equipment, we note that the latest developments are not transferred to the hands of the Central Asian military. Most of the deliveries are quite "old" armoured vehicles (Hummer, Cobra, M-ATV), helicopters (Apache, Airbus Helicopters) and aircraft (C-295W, Beechcraft King Air BOMBER Scorpion), drones (Bayraktar).
As a percentage, the number of weapons and military equipment supplied by NATO countries is less than that imported from Russia. This is also due to the fact that the states of the region support their own multi-vector policy, and also consider Russia as a more significant partner.
Arms imports in Turkmenistan (1991-2020) - the figures represent the values of the trend indicator (TIV) SIPRI, expressed in total in millions: Turkey - 409; Russia - 363; China - 234; Europe - 162; Ukraine - 105; Georgia - 12; USA - 10; Belarus - 4; UAE - 2
(Arms imports in Uzbekistan (1991-2020) - the figures represent the values of the trend indicator (TIV) SIPRI, expressed in total in millions: Russia - 142.0; China - 122.0; France - 90.0; Spain - 48.0; USA - 36.0; Canada - 8.0; Turkey - 5.0)
(Arms imports in Kazakhstan (1991-2020) - the figures represent the values of the trend indicator (TIV) SIPRI, expressed in total as a percentage: Russia - 85; Europe - 6; Ukraine - 3; others [Canada,South Korea, Turkey, South Africa] - 2.2; Israel - 1.4; USA - 1.4; China - 1.1)
From the above data, it is clear that Turkey is beginning to play an increasingly important role. Ankara promotes itself as a "Muslim supplier", appealing to the commonality of peoples and interests.
Along with the supply of weapons, Turkey is pursuing a policy of establishing joint military production. The production of Aselsan Engineering operates on this line in Kazakhstan, and the plans include the construction of the production of ARMA armoured vehicles. Similar proposals have been received and are being received in other states of Central Asia.
In terms of attempts to create military bases and military cooperation, we will consider the countries separately.
Uzbekistan. The United States maintained about 1,000 troops on its territory, stationed at a former Soviet air base, as well as at the Tuzel airfield near Tashkent. In Operation Enduring Freedom, the Khanabad Air Base was used as a command post, for conducting air strikes, coordinating special operations forces, and conducting search and rescue operations in northern Afghanistan. Tuzel airfield, according to unconfirmed official data, was used to provide flights of reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles of the Predator type.
Kyrgyzstan. In 2014, the United States closed the Transit Center at Manas Airport.
Tajikistan. The United States has the right to use Tajikistan's airspace. Of interest to the United States is the former Soviet Kulob base in Tajikistan, located at the intersection of many transport routes used for drug transit and previously as a transit point for the forces of the Islamic Party of Turkestan. In the future, the United States may also be able to acquire the Khorog, Kurgan Tube and Farkhor military bases located in the south of the country along the Afghan border.
Kazakhstan. The United States was granted the right to fly over its airspace and access its territory for the transfer of logistics, while refusing to allow combat units of the US Armed Forces. Washington signed an agreement with Astana, according to which three airfields in the south of the country (Shymkent, Lugovoy and Alma Ata) can be used by US and coalition aircraft for landing in an emergency.
These airfields are being studied by the United States for possible use in operations to maintain stability in Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan if their regimes collapse and riots arise in these states. It is also possible to use the Almaty airport purchased by a Turkish company.
Turkmenistan. The former Soviet Mary airbase operates on the territory of the state. This base is of interest to the United States in the context of transit for penetration into the Persian Gulf. However, NATO does not yet have access to it.
In the final analysis, we can confirm the idea that there are no NATO military bases on the territory of Central Asian states yet. But that doesn't mean they can't be created there. Washington has been in talks with Central Asian states since last year about the possibility of deploying its military capabilities in the region after the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.
In particular, this was stated by the US Special Representative for Reconciliation in Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad during his visit to Kazakhstan. Based on the existing agreements and previous use, the air bases of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan can become such.
Having considered these aspects of the military presence, we turn to an overview of the potential negative consequences for Russia:
1. The deployment of military bases will disrupt the balance of power in the region, provoking its instability.
2. An increase in the supply of weapons and military equipment may push Russia out of the arms market. Additionally, in the practical interaction of foreign and domestic equipment, there may be problems caused, among other things, by technical incompatibilities.
3. The presence of a well-developed network of biological laboratories poses a clear threat to the bacteriological safety of not only Russia, but also its partners - China and Iran.
4. An increased presence in the field of military education and training may lead to the creation of army structures modelled on NATO, which will make it difficult for them to interact with Russian ones. In addition, military specialists trained in the West or according to foreign patterns can become hidden agents of influence.
Summing up the above, we can confirm that NATO is gradually increasing its presence in the region through military education, supplies of weapons and military equipment, military exercises, the creation of a network of biolabs, and negotiations on the use of national bases in the interests of the Alliance countries.
Turkey is an active channel of intentions and simultaneously implements its goals. In the future, with the complicity of the country's leaders, this can create serious problems for Russia. Special attention should be paid to Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.