(Moscow) Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Monday announced new joint maneuvers with Russia in February, as the first Russian military began arriving in Belarus amid tensions with NATO.
Posted at 4:57 p.m.
“We planned to organize these exercises in February. Fix the exact date and let it be known, that we are not blamed for bringing in troops unannounced and almost going to war,” Lukashenko told a meeting with ministry officials. of the defense.
As part of the first stage of the inspection of Russian and Belarusian forces for these maneuvers, Russian soldiers and military equipment have started to arrive in Belarus, said for his part the secretary of the Belarusian security council, Alexander Volfovich, to the state-run Belta news agency.
RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY PHOTO, VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
This photo released by the Russian Defense Ministry press service shows tanks during maneuvers involving Russian and Belarusian forces in the Nizhny Novgorod region, Russia, September 29, 2021.
According to the Belarusian president, these maneuvers were decided in December 2021 with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, but their date had not yet been announced. He did not specify how many soldiers will participate.
“These should be normal exercises aimed at developing a precise plan in the event of a confrontation with forces coming from the West,” Lukashenko added in a video broadcast on a Telegram channel linked to the Belarusian presidency.
They will be baptized “Determination of the union 2022”, a reference to the Russian-Belarusian alliance.
Mr Lukashenko justified these exercises by the reinforcement of the NATO system in Poland and in the Baltic countries, on the borders of his country, as well as by the situation in Ukraine.
“Warsaw has asked NATO to deploy a multi-echelon logistic and technical support system. As soldiers, we immediately wonder why. It means they are preparing for something serious, at least in the long term,” he continued.
He also accused Ukraine of “continuing to build up its forces” on the outskirts of Belarus.
“The situation is such that there is an escalation of military potential on the border,” said Mr. Lukashenko, an ally of Russia who regularly presents his country as a bulwark of the Kremlin against Westerners.
Tensions have grown steadily in recent weeks between Russia and the West, who accuse Moscow of having massed troops in anticipation of an attack on Ukraine.
Moscow denies any bellicose intentions and in return denounces the strengthening of NATO on its borders and the plan to integrate Ukraine and Georgia into it, which it considers to be part of its sphere of influence.