Joint maneuver announced
Russia brings anti-missile defense to Belarus
1/29/2022 3:33 p.m
The Russian and Belarusian military want to conduct a joint exercise. There are fears, however, that this could only be a pretext to position equipment and soldiers for an attack on Ukraine. NATO members are also increasing their troops in Eastern Europe.
Russia has already relocated the first military technology to neighboring Belarus for a military exercise planned for mid-February. The Russian Ministry of Defense announced that the Pantir-S short-range anti-aircraft missile systems had arrived in Belarus. Previously, several Sukhoi Su-35 fighter planes had been relocated. The Russian S-400 air defense system is apparently still on its way to the former Soviet Republic of Belarus.
Moscow and Minsk are planning a joint military exercise in Belarus from February 10-20, which has raised concerns in the West over the current Ukraine crisis. The maneuver is to be held in southern Belarus, which borders Ukraine. The US State Department has expressed concern that Moscow could station troops in Belarus and attack Ukraine from there under the guise of the maneuvers.
Most recently, Western countries have repeatedly expressed concern that Russia could seek an invasion of neighboring Ukraine. Moscow denies such plans. The United States announced further troop deployments to Eastern Europe and NATO countries because of the Ukraine conflict. But it is only a small number of soldiers, said US President Joe Biden. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chief of Staff Mark Milley called for de-escalation to prevent a “appalling” war.
Great Britain is also considering sending fresh troops to Eastern Europe, according to government circles in London. This could strengthen NATO’s defenses. At the beginning of the week, NATO announced an increase in its military presence in Eastern Europe. Several member states of the western military alliance want to send additional combat aircraft and ships to the Baltic Sea and Eastern European countries such as Lithuania, Romania and Bulgaria.
According to Western sources, Russia has massed more than 100,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian border. The Kremlin denies attack plans, but at the same time states that it feels threatened by Ukraine and NATO. Russian President Vladimir Putin is therefore demanding written commitments from NATO, for example to refrain from further eastward expansion. The US and its western allies reject this.