days. On 21 November 2005, the withdrawal of US troops from Karshi-Khanabad and any other bases was completed. The European Union lifted the arms sales ban in 2009. Uzbekistan and Russia signed a mutual defence pact in 2005 for closer military cooperation. This marked a stark contrast to a few years earlier, when the US appeared to be Uzbekistan's favoured foreign friend, and relations with Russia were cooler. Arms control and non-proliferation The government has accepted the arms control obligations of the former Soviet Union, and acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty as a non-nuclear state. It has also supported an active program by the U.S. Department of Defense Defense Threat Reduction Agency in western Uzbekistan (Nukus and the biological warfare test laboratory on Vozrozhdeniye Island). Land Forces The army includes five military districts. In 2001, the Tashkent garrison was transformed into the Tashkent Military District. The headquarters of the military districts and their areas of responsibility are as follows: Air Forces The Uzbek air forces consist of units formerly part of the 49th Air Army of the Turkestan Military District headquartered at Tashkent. There are two remaining combat units, brigades at Karshi-Khanabad and Dzhizak. The 60th Separate Brigade is the former 735th Bomber Aviation Regiment combined with the former 87th Separate Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment. It has 31 Su-24s, 32 MiG-29s, and 6 Su-27s. Other recently disbanded units include the 61st Fighter Aviation Regiment at Kakaydy, which was itself a merger with the previous 115th Fighter Aviation Regiment, and the 62nd Fighter Aviation Regiment at Andijan. Regiments at both bases were disbanded in 1999. As many as 26 stored Su-17s, apparently in very bad condition, remain at Chirchiq (see Google Earth 41°30'05.69"N 69°33'44.90"E) Other elements Special units Different special units in the armed forces include the following: Central Song and Dance Ensemble of the Armed Forces – Founded on 27 May 1992. Honour Guard Battalion Band of the Ministry of Defence Band of the Ministry of the Interior Band of the National Guard Equestrian Squadron of the National Guard Army Special Forces 15th Independent Special Forces Brigade 17th Air Assault Brigade Independent Special Purpose Battalion "Lynx" Uzbekistan formed Special Forces Battalions which are trained and formed by American and other NATO experts, located in provinces which border troubled republics like Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Units of the Special Operations Forces are based in the most important operational areas, including the mountainous