Fri 06 January 2023:
The Belarusian Defense Ministry confirmed on Friday that additional military hardware from Russia had arrived in Belarus as part of the Regional Grouping of Forces (RGV), Reuters reported.
In a statement, the Defense Ministry said the bolstering of the RGV is “exclusively in the interests of strengthening the security and defense of the Union State (of Russia and Belarus), based on the evolving situation” at the country’s borders.
President Alexander Lukashenko also visited a military base in the southwestern Brest region where Russian troops are already stationed.
On Oct. 10, Lukashenko said he had agreed with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on the deployment of a joint regional group of troops “in connection with the aggravation on the western borders of the Union State (of Russia and Belarus).”
Up to 9,000 Russian troops and several hundred armored vehicles will join the Belarusian forces on the Belarus-Ukraine border, according to the Belarusian Defense Ministry.
Ready to defend union state
Belarusian Deputy Defense Minister Andrey Zhuk said on Friday that the Belarusian-Russian joint regional military detachment is ready to defend the Union State of Belarus and Russia amid the situation escalating near its western borders.
“And as of today, we can state that the regional detachment is ready to defend the Union State,” Zhuk told reporters.
Belarus and Russia will continue to improve joint military training, the Belarusian official said.
“There will be training of inter-service units. A tactical aviation exercise is starting in the country (Belarus). Then there will be various types of staff training. One of the phases of the training will be joint drills called ‘Union Shield-2023.’ This is what we are aiming for, I think the training will continue with good quality,” Zhuk added.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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