Gen Rawat holds talks with Kazakh counterpart on defence ties

Army chief Gen. Bipin Rawat today held extensive talks with his Kazakh counterpart in Astana and explored ways to ramp up defence and counter-terror cooperation between the two countries.
Rawat is currently on a three-day visit to Kazakhstan.
"He met Commander-in-Chief Land Forces of Kazakhstan today and discussed with him various aspects of cooperation between the two armies," the Army said in a statement here.
It said both the sides agreed to take forward the joint exercise between their armies.
The joint exercise is scheduled to be held at Bakloh, Himmachal Pradesh in November.
At the meeting, Gen. Rawat also conveyed India's support for deployment of Kazakh forces in UN peacekeeping operations.

"Kazakhstan further sought assistance for capacity enhancement in the areas of counter insurgency operations, military education and training of cadets in India. The Chief of Army Staff assured them of whole-hearted support.
"He complimented the Kazakh Army for their professionalism as witnessed during the demonstration while visiting the 36 Air Assault Brigade," said the Army.
Gen. Rawat will leave for Turkmenistan tomorrow.