Approximately 95,000 Russian soldiers and more than 7,000 combat vehicles are participating in a large-scale strategic exercise in the Central Military District (CMD), the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on September 14.

"The Center-2015 exercise is the final step in the military preparations of the armed forces throughout 2015," RT news agency quoted a statement from the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The joint exercise between members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) aims to contain a hypothetical international armed conflict in the Central Asian region, added Lieutenant General Vladimir Zarudnitsky, commander of the CMD.

According to Sputnik news agency, the Center-2015 exercise, which lasts until September 20, will involve 170 aircraft and 20 warships from the CMD, the Caspian Fleet, airborne forces, and other national security agencies.

Deputy Minister of Defense and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, General Valery Gerasimov, personally commanded this exercise.

"What we are witnessing has never happened since the Cold War – the late 1970s and early 1980s. The military is not only testing new vehicles, equipment and techniques, but is also using enormous resources to do so," military historian Vyacheslav Filatov told Zvezda channel.

Here are some images of the ongoing exercise at CMD:

According to VNN