MOSCOW: The Zapad-2025 strategic drills are part of efforts to enhance cooperation between Russia and Belarus and are not targeted at thir...
MOSCOW: The Zapad-2025 strategic drills are part of efforts to enhance cooperation between Russia and Belarus and are not targeted at third countries, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said at a briefing.
"There indeed are going to be drills. They are routine drills, not aimed against anyone else. It’s about a continuation of defense cooperation and efforts to improve interaction between two strategic allies," he noted.
Peskov added that Russia would continue to pursue the same policy, which "is absolutely no secret to anyone." "And I would like to reiterate that none of these actions is directed toward third countries," he added.
The Zapad-2025 (or West-2025) drills are set to be held in Belarus on September 12-16. The exercises will be dedicated to the use of battlegroups for ensuring the military security of the Union State of Russia and Belarus. Troops particularly plan to practice repelling airstrikes and combating enemy sabotage groups, as well as using nuclear weapons and Russia's newest Oreshnik medium-range ballistic missile system.
Meanwhile, Poland and NATO are holding the Iron Defender divisional drills, which involve about 34,000 troops and 600 units of equipment. Warsaw claims that the maneuvers come in response to the Zapad-2025 Russian-Belarusian exercise. On September 9, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that the border with Belarus would be closed overnight on September 12 due to the Zapad-2025 drills.
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