ASTANA, (Kazakhstan): Central Asian countries on Tuesday held joint drills with land, naval and air forces, for the first time without regional powers Russia and China.

Kazakhstan is hosting four other ex-Soviet states for the drills, which a spokesman for Kazakhstan’s armed forces told AFP were “the first of their kind”.

“All the participants have arrived,” the spokesman said.

The exercises are named Birlestik-2024, meaning alliance in Kazakh.

Taking place in the Caspian Sea, they will last until July 17 and involve around 4,000 troops with warships, aviation, artillery and tanks.

Taking part are four Central Asian republics — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, while Turkmenistan is absent.

The Caucasus country of Azerbaijan is also participating, while Russia, traditionally dominant in the area, is fighting in Ukraine.

Kyrgyzstan’s defence ministry said that during the drills, troops will “liberate an island captured by terrorists” and “carry out operations to ensure security at sea and to protect infrastructure”.