Belarussia, due to the aggravation of the conflict in the Donbass, decided to extend the check of the response forces. It began at the end of January, and on February 10, the Allied Resolve-2022 exercises started. In the West, they said that with the help of the exercises, Russia was preparing the ground for an invasion of Ukraine. Moscow denied all accusations. The military exercises of the Union State (including Russia and Belarus) were successful, but in the light of new threats, the combat readiness of the troops needs to be additionally checked, said Belarusian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin.

“There was a very strong smell of gunpowder in Europe. It is purposefully pushed towards war,” Khrenin believes.

As evidence, the minister pointed to suspicious military activity in countries neighboring Russia and Belarus. Thus, "numerous groupings of troops" have been created in these states. Military and transport infrastructure facilities have also been modernized there.

“Neighboring countries are being “pumped up” with the most modern weapons in an emergency unscheduled manner. At the same time, priority is given to modern offensive weapons," Khrenin said.

He added that much more military exercises are now being conducted near the borders of the Union State than before. Khrenin noted that the meaning of these exercises is “incomprehensible” to Russia and Belarus, but it is obvious that they are directed against the Union State.

“The idea of ​​the inevitability of war with the“ eastern neighbors ”is firmly embedded in the consciousness of the western man in the street. At the same time, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus are accused of militaristic aspirations, ”the head of the Belarusian Defense Ministry emphasized.

Khrenin drew attention to the fact that in such a threatening situation, Europe refuses to reckon with the fears of Moscow and its "red lines", which Minsk also shares. Instead, the West is trying to find new ways for the military development of Ukraine.

“In connection with the increase in military activity near the external borders of the Union State and the aggravation of the situation in the Donbass, the presidents of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation decided to continue checking the response forces of the Union State,” Khrenin summed up.

During the new stage, the allies will, as before, work out joint actions in the field of defense. However, now they will pay more attention to those issues that have not been worked out in such detail before.

Khrenin singled out the positive points that the past test showed. Firstly, for Russia and Belarus there is no “military Schengen” problem that is relevant for the West (that is, the need to additionally coordinate the movement of troops of one country across the territory of another). Khrenin noted that the Russian Federation and Belarus have all the necessary infrastructure ready, and the legal aspects have been settled.

“Regardless of nationality, the military command and control bodies of all associations worked as an integral “organism”. We have a common “school”, common approaches – we act in the same way and think the same way,” the minister explained.

In general, Russian and Belarusian troops, he said, have proved that they can work together in a coordinated, high-quality and fast manner. We are talking about both different types of troops, and the logistics of the army.

“The accumulated basis allows us to create and build up any coalition groups, regardless of their size,” Khrenin said.

Russia and Belarus began checking the forces and means of reaction of the Union State at the end of January. On February 10, the exercise "Allied Resolve-2022" started. Their important task was to assess the capabilities of the transport infrastructure to ensure the transportation of troops during the transfer of Russian units to the territory of Belarus. The exact number of military personnel who arrived from Russia to Belarus for the exercises was not officially disclosed. Khrenin specified on February 20 that the issues of ensuring the regrouping of troops on such a scale were worked out by Russia and Belarus for the first time.

Russian President Vladimir Putin explained that the Russian-Belarusian exercises "are purely defensive in nature and do not threaten anyone." The Belarusian General Staff reported that after the exercises, the Russian military would leave the republic.

The exercises have raised concerns in the United States and the West, which believe that Russia has amassed a military contingent near the border with Ukraine because it may be planning an attack on that country. “Exercises like the maneuvers in Belarus could be used as a camouflage for an invasion of Ukraine. Russia has used exercises as a cover before,” said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

The State Department also stated that Russia was transferring troops to Belarus only "under the pretext" of ongoing exercises. According to a State Department official, Moscow has sent more troops than the US would expect as part of a standard exercise. The United States assumed that Russia would attack Ukraine from the north side.

bbabo.Net