Units of the Russian army began to arrive on the territory of Belarus to participate in an unscheduled inspection of the response forces of the Union State (SG).
This was reported on the website of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic.
“In accordance with the approved plan to check the response forces of the Union State, units from the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation began to arrive on the territory of the Republic of Belarus,” the military department of Belarus said.
Footage of the unloading of the first transferred echelons with equipment of the RF Armed Forces was published on January 18 on the YouTube channel of the Belarusian VoenTV, the only television company in the country that has a permit to work in units and formations of the Armed Forces of Belarus.
Belarusian servicemen greeted Russian comrades with bread and salt.
As the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of Belarus, Inna Gorbacheva, explained to journalists, Russian troops will arrive in the republic during the first stage of the check, which should be completed on February 9.
Minsk did not specify the composition of the grouping of the RF Armed Forces, which will perform tasks in Belarus, but Russian army trucks and infantry fighting vehicles are captured on widespread footage of unloading echelons.
On January 18, during a briefing for foreign military attachés, Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Colonel General Alexander Fomin, said that in order to check "the functioning of the unified air defense system of the Union State," 12 Su-35 fighters, divisions of S-400 anti-aircraft systems will be relocated to the territory of a neighboring country "Triumph" and air defense systems "Pantsir-S".
“The purpose of the exercise will be to work out the tasks of suppressing and repelling external aggression in the course of conducting a defensive operation, countering terrorism and protecting the interests of the Union State,” Fomin said.
Briefing for foreign military attaches by Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Colonel-General Alexander Fomin
© Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The number of troops and the amount of weapons that will be deployed in Belarus have not been reported.
However, as emphasized in Moscow and Minsk, they will not exceed the parameters set in the 2011 Vienna Document on Confidence and Security Building Measures, and therefore are not subject to notification by the participants in this international agreement, which include Western states and countries of the post-Soviet space.
Recall that the Vienna Document allows the deployment of a military group, the number of which does not exceed 13 thousand, without the presence of foreign observers. It also sets limits on the concentration of tanks, armored combat vehicles, artillery pieces and other types of military equipment.
"General Protection"
According to the surprise inspection plan, which was published by the Russian and Belarusian Defense Ministry, the activities of the reaction forces of the Union State will be carried out in two stages.
During the first, groupings of troops should be formed in threatened areas, and in a short time.
In addition, until February 9, the defense of important state and military facilities of the SG, the protection of the state border will be organized, and an assessment of the readiness of the air defense forces "to perform combat training tasks using control targets" will be carried out.
At the second stage of the verification, which will last from February 10 to February 20, at the Obuz-Lesnovsky, Osipovichsky, Brest, Gozhsky, Domanovsky training grounds and in certain areas, a joint exercise "Allied Resolve - 2022" will be held.
It is also planned to use the airfields of Baranovichi, Luninets, Lida and Machulishchi in the maneuvers.
“The main outcome of the ongoing activities will be an assessment of the ability of the military command and control bodies and troops (forces) to fulfill the tasks of ensuring the military security of the Union State,” the website of the Belarusian Defense Ministry says.
Similar information was voiced by Alexander Fomin.
At the same time, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation added that in the space of the Union State "a situation may arise when the forces and means of the regional grouping will not be enough to guarantee security."
In this case, according to Fomin, Moscow and Minsk are ready to strengthen the group.
In this regard, subdivisions and command and control bodies of the Eastern Military District of Russia were involved in a sudden inspection.
“Together with the Belarusian side, an understanding was reached that for common defense it will be necessary to involve the entire potential of the state’s military organization,” Fomin emphasized.
Moreover, as the deputy head of the Russian military department noted, as part of the verification of the SG response forces, “it is planned to prepare troops and forces for actions not only within their own boundaries of responsibility.”
According to Fomin, these could be suddenly arising tasks "to localize crisis situations in any threatened areas."
Russian infantry fighting vehicles in Belarus
© Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Belarus
Commenting on the statement of the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, experts interviewed by RT expressed the opinion that using the entire potential of the Union State and conducting operations outside it is possible only in the event of military aggression against Russia or Belarus.
At the same time, according to analysts, the plans of Moscow and Minsk do not contradict international law and are based on the principle of collective self-defense, enshrined in the UN Charter.
“It is clear that in the event of a real threat, Moscow and Minsk will militarily act together, Russian and Belarusian troops must be ready for the most unexpected turns of events and actions in response to provocations,” said the director of the Center for Military-Political MGIMO Research Alexey Podberyozkin.
According to the expert, Moscow and Minsk are certainly worried about the concentration of NATO troops near the borders of Belarus.
In addition, the authorities of the two countries are afraid of possible provocations by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“Now there is an influx of instructors from NATO countries to Ukraine, there are new deliveries of weapons.
All this may indicate that the Ukrainian army is being prepared for some actions.
How large-scale and radical they can be, the future will show, but in any unfavorable scenario, Russia and Belarus are ready to act together, ”Podberyozkin emphasized.
In an interview with RT, retired Major General Pavel Zolotarev, a member of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, also linked Fomin’s phrase about preparing troops “to act not only within their own boundaries of responsibility” with NATO’s policy towards countries of the post-Soviet space that are outside this bloc and count on membership.
“In my opinion, this is not an accidental and timely warning from Moscow, which is designed to make the alliance think a little when it rests on the issue of making a decision to refuse further advance to the east,” Zolotarev said.
Response to militarization
The unscheduled check of the reaction forces of the Union State is not the first major joint military event of Moscow and Minsk in recent times.
From September 10 to 16, 2021, the Russian-Belarusian joint strategic exercise (SSU) "West-2021" was held.
The maneuvers took place at nine training grounds of the Russian Federation, five sites in Belarus and in the Baltic Sea.
In total, up to 200 thousand military personnel and 760 units of military equipment, including shock robotic systems, were involved in the SSU.
Practicing the actions of Russian and Belarusian troops during the active phase of the SSU "West-2021"
© Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Speaking on December 21 at an expanded meeting of the board of the Ministry of Defense, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the results of the West-2021 maneuvers testify to an increase in the level of combat training of the troops of the Union State.
In a RT commentary, Pyotr Petrovsky, an employee of the Institute of Philosophy of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, noted that all the exercises of the armed forces of the two countries are aimed at practicing combat coordination and actions in a single control loop.
In addition, maneuvers within the framework of the SG have an important foreign policy background.
The sudden test of the reaction forces of the Union State, according to Petrovsky, was caused by the reaction of Moscow and Minsk to the militarization of the border territories by NATO and Ukraine.
“This is a demonstration of our military capabilities to Western countries and other potential aggressors, a warning about the inadmissibility of provocations, any threatening forceful actions and preparation for them,” the expert said.
According to Petrovsky, Moscow and Minsk are making it clear to a potential adversary that they are ready to quickly increase the number of military groups in threatening directions and concentrate the amount of military equipment that will force the West and Ukraine to reconsider any aggressive plans.
The analyst added that the military policy of Russia and Belarus is defensive in nature and aimed at preventing the current balance of power in Eastern Europe from being disturbed, which is what NATO is striving for.
“In order to prevent an imbalance, and Alexander Lukashenko spoke about this, Iskander operational-tactical complexes may be deployed in Belarus.
In my opinion, it cannot be ruled out that in the event of an aggravation of the situation on the western borders of the republic, a temporary Russian-Belarusian contingent will be formed, ”summed up Petrovsky.