The Russian and Belarusian armies today launched a joint military exercise in Belarus that will last ten days, Moscow said amid escalating tensions between Russia and West on Ukraine.
“The exercises are being carried out with the aim of preparing to stop and repel an external attack as part of a defense operation,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The exercises take place in five training grounds, four air bases and “various locations” in Belarus, mainly in the Brest region, located in border with Ukraineaccording to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
The Minsk and Moscow Armed Forces have not specified the number of troops and equipment involved in the exercises, but according to the West 30,000 Russian troops have been deployed in Belarus in this context.
These high schools are seen by Kiev and the West as a means of pressure on Moscow, which has been mobilizing more than 100,000 troops since November on its border with Ukraine.
Russia is accused of being ready to launch a new military operation against Kiev, which the Kremlin denies, saying it wants to guarantee its security in the face of hostile behavior by Kiev and NATO.
These tensions have led to a series of diplomatic contacts between Moscow and the western capitals in an effort to de-escalate the crisis. French President Emmanuel Macron traveled to Moscow on Monday and to Kiev on Tuesday.
Today, British Foreign Secretary Liz Tras is also expected to hold talks in Moscow with her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
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