Russia and Belarus launched major military exercises on Friday, denounced in particular by neighboring Poland, against a backdrop of recurring Russo-Western tensions, each side accusing itself of increasing hostile maneuvers. These maneuvers called "Zapad 2021" (West-2021) take place on nine Russian military bases, five Belarusian bases and in the Baltic Sea. "Some 200,000 soldiers, more than 80 planes and helicopters, 760 war vehicles, including more than 290 tanks (...) as well as up to 15 ships participate in strategic exercises", indicated the Russian Ministry of Defense, which broadcast images of its fleet in the Baltic Sea.

In early September, Polish President Andrzej Duda signed a decree on the introduction of a state of emergency for thirty days on the border with Belarus, in anticipation of these military exercises and fears of a massive influx of migrants.

This is the first state of emergency in Poland since the fall of communism in 1989. For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin, receiving his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday in Moscow, considered that these exercises made sense, given that NATO, its strategic adversary, was deployed in Eastern Europe.

"We do nothing other than what our adversaries and competitors are already doing"

The Zapad-2021 maneuvers "are not directed against anyone, but their behavior is logical, when we see other alliances, NATO in particular, which is actively increasing its military presence at the borders of the Russian-Belarusian Union", he said. "We are not doing anything other than what our adversaries and competitors are already doing," said Alexander Lukashenko for his part. The two men announced a series of agreements to increase their economic integration and spoke of "the creation of a unified defense space", according to Valdimir Poutine.

In an interview with the

Polska Times

newspaper

published this Friday, the Polish Minister of Defense, Mariusz Blaszczak, estimated that these military exercises tested the "immune system" of Warsaw which must know "how and when we are able to react" . According to him, they offer Moscow and Minsk the opportunity to carry out "hybrid activities", such as "disinformation, provocations and border incidents".

While Minsk is accused of encouraging the passage of migrants to the EU in revenge for Western sanctions, Mariusz Blaszczak argues that the Zapad-2021 maneuvers could be followed by "increased migratory pressure" on Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

Since being sanctioned by the West due to the repression of a vast protest movement in 2020 and 2021, the Belarusian president has made an accelerated rapprochement with Moscow, presenting his country as Russia's last bulwark against to a possible NATO aggression.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Michoustine is also in Minsk this Friday for talks on their integration.

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  • Alexander Lukashenko

  • Belarus

  • World

  • Russia

  • Vladimir Poutine

  • Poland