Russia Belarus joint military drills
Moscow (dpa) — Russian and Belarusian armed forces kicked off large-scale joint exercises on Friday, as German forces in neighbouring Lithuania led their own military drills.
The exercises by Russia and Belarus span training grounds in both countries as well as in the Baltic Sea and the Barents Sea.
The drills come with the war in Ukraine raging and western European countries on high alert over potential threats from Russia in the wake of a drone incursion over Polish territory earlier this week.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Defence in Moscow, the Zapad 2025 (“West 2025”) drills are aimed at improving the interaction between military units, especially between commanders and staff, as they jointly defend against a threat.
The forces will also test the Oreshnik medium-range missile, which has the potential to carry nuclear warheads.
According to information from Moscow, observers and troop contingents from other Russian partner countries are also participating in the exercise.
Moscow has not released any official information on the number of soldiers and military units involved.
According to Western estimates, a total of around 30,000 soldiers are involved, including around 8,000 on Belarusian soil.
Compared to previous exercises, the drills are relatively small. In the drills in 2021, around 200,000 soldiers took part. The troops that remained in western Russia and Belarus then launched the attack on Ukraine in February 2022 that began the war.
It is partly due to the ongoing conflict that Russia has fewer reserves to take part in the exercises.
Earlier this week nearly 20 Russian drones flew over Poland during a Russian attack on Ukraine. Some were then shot down in the first such incident involving a NATO country.
German forces hold exercises in Lithuania
The German military’s inspector general, Carsten Breuer, referenced the drone incursion as he visited Lithuania during a major exercise on Friday.
“The recent violation of Polish airspace by Russia has once again shown how important our engagement is. Our contribution to defending NATO’s eastern flank is reliable – we are ready to protect every inch of alliance territory,” Breuer told dpa.
Breuer said that the German-led Quadriga 2025 exercises in the Baltic region include realistic logistical support scenarios for troops in a potential conflict, marking the first time such a manoeuvre has been conducted on such a scale.
According to Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, there was no indication of any imminent aggression against his country.
However, the risk of drone incursions, airspace violations or other provocations could not be ruled out, he said.
“We have taken measures and there is no information to suggest that these exercises could be used for aggression against Lithuania,” he said.
‘Emotional overload’
The Kremlin on Friday dismissed any Western concerns about the Zapad 2025 drills.
According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, under normal circumstances neighbouring states would simply observe each other’s military exercises, state news agency TASS reported.
“But now Western Europe is taking a hostile stance towards us, and that is leading to emotional overload in these countries,” he said.
Peskov referred in particular to the decision by neighbour Poland to close its border with Belarus because of the manoeuvres.
Russia has never threatened other countries, the Kremlin spokesman said.
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