Belarus is conducting military exercises near the borders with Poland and Lithuania for four days, involving mechanized units and tank battalions.
The exercises started on September 15 and will end on September 18. The Belarusian Ministry of Defense states that they have a defensive nature and aim to improve the current capacity of the army to protect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, as reported by Kiev Independent.
The military personnel are training to protect the borders, combat sabotage groups, and detect and repel drone and light aircraft attacks.
Some of the exercises are taking place at the Gozhsky training ground in the Grodno region, approximately 6 km from the Lithuanian border. Other maneuvers are happening at the Bresťky and Rujansky training grounds, located about 15 and 60 km from the Polish border, respectively.
Close to One of NATO's Sensitive Points
The location of the exercises is drawing attention as the troops are training near the Suwalki corridor, a 100-kilometer border strip between Poland and Lithuania.
The corridor represents the only land connection between the Baltic states and the rest of NATO territory. At the same time, it separates Belarus from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and is considered one of the most vulnerable points on the Alliance's eastern flank.
The Belarusian Chief of the General Staff, Pavel Muraveiko, stated that the exercise program does not include offensive operations. "Any speculation, discussion, or statement that the Belarusian Armed Forces are preparing to launch an offensive against neighboring countries is completely unfounded and has no factual basis," he said, as quoted by the independent Belarusian publication Pozirk.
According to the official, the exercises do not involve large-scale movements of troops or military equipment.
Minsk has not specified the number of participating military personnel. The Ministry of Defense only asserts that their number and the amount of weaponry used do not exceed the thresholds set in the 2011 Vienna Document, which would require prior notification to other states.
Exercises Taking Place in a Tense Moment
Belarus is one of Russia's closest allies. The regime led by Alexander Lukashenko allowed Moscow to use Belarusian territory to invade Ukraine in February 2022, although the Belarusian army did not directly enter the war.
The maneuvers began at a time when drone incidents have heightened tensions on NATO's eastern flank. A drone that allegedly entered Lithuania from Belarus was shot down on Monday by an Italian aircraft on a NATO mission. Lithuanian authorities are investigating the origin of the drone and the circumstances under which it entered the country's airspace.
G.P.