CFE ratification allows Russia to reinforce its military group in Northwest

On Monday the Federation Council's international committee recommended the upper house to ratify the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty on Wednesday.

Andrei Maslov, the deputy director of the Foreign Ministry security and disarmament department, said at the committee session that the ratification of this document will allow Russia to considerably increase the number of servicemen and hardware in the Northwestern region, in particular, the Kaliningrad and Pskov regions.

"The new treaty will allow Russia to considerably increase the number of this hardware. Thus, our capabilities on combat armored vehicles will be increased fourfold," Maslov said.

In his words, the CFE allows Russia to preserve its presence in Georgia "within the parameters of the so-called basic military deployment."

As for the terms of operation of Russian military bases in Georgia, this issue is not regulated by the CFE but will be resolved at bilateral talks," Maslov said.