MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered another unannounced inspection of Russia's Armed Forces, during which the state and readiness of military arsenals will be assessed.
"In accordance with an order by Defense Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu, the military attaches of foreign embassies accredited at the Russian Defense Ministry, and through OSCE channels, all member states of the Vienna Document…were provided information about the June 14-22 surprise inspection," Antonov told reporters.
"This is a confirmation of the Russian Defense Ministry’s willingness to develop voluntary measures of transparency and to build trust," the deputy minister added.
The Vienna Document is a deal between the participating states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) intended for the implementation of confidence and security building measures.
The practice of having unannounced inspections of combat readiness was revived after Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu took the defense minister's office in 2012.
In February, the Russian president ordered snap inspections of the country’s Central Military District. During the inspections, the troops were carrying out various drills to test their combat readiness. The checks also assessed the airborne forces' readiness for long-distance missions and landing in unfamiliar terrain.
