Russian Defense Minister doesn't rule out Caspian grouping possibility

Russian military leaders would not rule out the possibility of the creation of a Caspian grouping, Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said in a statement Saturday during a training exercise of Russia's Caspian Flotilla, which has been underway for some days now.

The minister elaborated the grouping in question could include Kazakhstan apart from Russia. He noted that the threats existing around the Caspian Sea are "real," adding that the Russian military establishment had been candid about the exercise's purpose from the very start.