Russia plans more aircraft, helicopters at airbase in Belarus — defense minister

[Hindustani78]

http://tass.com/politics/962107
MOSCOW, August 25. /TASS/. West-2017 joint military drills between Russia and Belarus are purely defensive, while the actual number of troops and military equipment involved is less than claims made by the foreign media, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday.

"The West-2017 combined military exercises involving the Russian and Belarusian armed forces are purely defensive," the statement reads.

"The hype over the drills is artificial and aimed at justifying the spending on NATO’s military build-up on Poland and the Baltic states in the eyes of the western audience," the statement adds.

"We would like to point out that it is these actions that raise military tensions in Europe - a fact that the western ‘soldiers of the pen and mic’ have been complaining about recently," the ministry said.

Number of troops
The Russian Foreign Ministry rejected the allegations which said that the number of the troops expected to participate in the military exercises had been deliberately understated, while the drills’ transparency was not ensured.

"The total number of troops and military equipment does not exceed the level subjected to mandatory monitoring of certain military activities, as it is stipulated by the 2011 Vienna document," the Russian Foreign Ministry added. According to the statement, "the drills, scheduled to take place on September 14-20, will involve up to 12,700 troops [7,200 Belarusian and 5,500 Russian, including 3,000 troops in Belarus], as well as around 70 planes and helicopters, up to 680 pieces of military equipment, including about 250 tanks, around 200 cannons, multiple launch rocket systems and mortars, and up to ten ships."

"It is far less that the claims being made by the media in connection with the upcoming military exercises," the statement says.

At the same time, the Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out that Belarus, acting on its own initiative, had invited representatives of the United Nations, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), NATO, Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), as well as diplomats and military observers from Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Sweden and Norway, to monitor the drills. Moreover, Belarus held a briefing on the sidelines of the OSCE Forum for Security Cooperation. "We welcome the steps taken by Belarus," the Russian Foreign Ministry noted.

Russian military experts, in turn, held a briefing dedicated to the drills in NATO headquarters on July 13. Until the end of August, the Russian Defense Ministry planned to organize another briefing for foreign diplomats and military experts accredited in Russia.

The drills
West-2017 military drills, scheduled to take place at six training ranges in Russia and Belarus on September 14-20, will involve around 12,700 troops. The number of troops expected to participate in the drills is less than that stipulated by the 2011 Vienna document (13,000). This is the reason why it is not mandatory to invite foreign observers to monitor the military exercises.

However, a number of western countries have been voicing their concern over the upcoming drills.



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http://tass.com/politics/962107

 

[Hindustani78]

https://sputniknews.com/russia/201709091057235826-russia-zapad-2017/

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov on Saturday denied German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen's claim of 100,000 Russian troops taking part in upcoming Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 drills.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday, at the EU Defense Ministers' meeting in Tallinn, that the drills were about to serve as a demonstration of Russia's power and capabilities, adding that there were more than 100,000 troops involved in the exercise.

"We are surprised at the statements made by German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, public statements about 100,000 Russian troops allegedly involved in Zapad-2017 drills, although it is unclear where that number came from, and some dangers for Europe related to that," Konashenkov told reporters.

According to the Defense Ministry spokesman, the German side was briefed, fully and in time, on aims and the defensive nature of the drills, as well as on the actual number of Russian troops participating in the exercise. Belarus provided Germany with all relevant information, while Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin briefed the German military attache stationed at the country's embassy in Moscow on August 29.

Konashenkov also pointed out that Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov told NATO Military Committee Chairman Petr Pavel at their meeting in Baku earlier this week about the routine nature of the drills, stressing that they were not aimed against any countries.

"It is hard to imagine that colleagues of Ursula von der Leyen from NATO, from other relevant German agencies, or her staff are knowingly misinforming the German Defense Minister. It is much easier to imagine the contrary," Konashenkov said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said earlier that the increasing military presence of NATO in Eastern Europe went unnoticed amid groundless criticism of the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 military exercises.

Zapad-2017 drills are scheduled to kick off next Thursday in Belarus, as well as at three ranges in Russia, and are to last until September 20. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, up to 12,700 troops will participate in the exercise. A number of NATO member states and Ukraine have expressed concern over the drills.

 

[Hindustani78]

https://sputniknews.com/military/201709141057389643-zapad-2017-russia-belarus-war-games/
15:58 14.09.2017(updated 16:56 14.09.2017)

As the Russia-Belarus Zapad 2017 war games have started earlier in the day, Sputnik has summed up all the information currently available about the drills, which had prompted criticism from several eastern NATO states long before they had kicked off.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The strategic military exercise by Russia and Belarus, dubbed Zapad-2017 (West-2017 in Russian), kicked off on Thursday on the territories of the two allied countries.

The joint exercises, dubbed Zapad or Union Shield, are a biennial combat training event held by rotation in Belarus and Russia.

What Zapad-2017 is All About

The Zapad-2017 drills that kicked off earlier in the day will continue until Wednesday supervised by chiefs of national armed forces’ general staffs.

The exercises involve about 12,700 officers and soldiers, including about 7,200 servicemen from Belarus, with the Russian Armed Forces committing about 5,500 officers and soldiers. Of this number, about 3,000 service personnel will exercise in Belarus. The drills will also involve about 70 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters and up to 680 pieces of ground-based military equipment, including about 250 tanks, up to 200 artillery systems, MLRS and mortars and 10 warships.

The drills will take place both at Belarusian firing ranges and the firing ranges of Russia's Kaliningrad, Leningrad and Pskov Regions.

During the drills, the two countries will work to improve the cooperation between the headquarters and interoperability between advanced troop and weapons control systems. Belarus and Russia will also test the provisions of new military regulations that have been drafted in both states.

According to the drills' scenario, extremist groups have penetrated Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad Region in order to carry out terrorist attacks and to destabilize the situation in the Union State. The extremists are supported by foreign countries receiving material and technical assistance, including weapons and military equipment by air and sea.

Although Belarus is hosting most of the exercises, their scenario implies an imaginary enemy not linked with any specific region.

Reaction

Despite Russia inviting NATO experts and foreign journalists to observe the planned drills, the Zapad-2017 has prompted Baltic states' and Poland's claims of the drills allegedly being a "threat" to their security with Ukraine being the latest state beating that war drums over the upcoming exercise.

However, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance does not see any imminent threat posed against any NATO member by the drills.

In their turn, senior Russian and Belarusian officials reiterated that the drills do not pose any threat to other states and are exclusively defensive in nature. Moreover, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko stated earlier that these exercises would be open for foreign observers. The Defense Ministry of Belarus reported in August that observers from seven countries — Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Sweden, Norway — were invited to the event.

However, eventially only Latvia decided to send experts to the Zapad-2017 drills.

When commenting on NATO states' reaction to the planned drills, the Russian Foreign Ministry said earlier that increasing military presence of NATO in Eastern Europe went unnoticed amid groundless criticism of the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 military exercises.

Moscow has repeatedly criticized the increased presence of the alliance’s troops and military facilities near the Russian border. Moscow has said Russia had never planned and does not plan to attack any NATO member.

History of the Drills

The Zapad exercises were held in 2009 and 2013, followed by the Union Shield exercises in 2011 and 2015.

These purely defensive exercises take place in a simulated battlefield environment and aim to boost cooperation and cohesion between the Russian and Belarusian armed forces.

Russia and Belarus hosted the first Zapad drills on September 8-29, 2009. The exercise scenario dealt with a hypothetical military conflict, stipulated modern conflict prevention concepts and defensive operations.

According to the Belarusian Defense Ministry, the exercise involved about 12,600 officers and soldiers, including about 6,500 from the Belarusian Armed Forces and other national military formations, about 1,800 reservists, as well as about 6,000 Russian soldiers and 30 Kazakh servicemen.

In September 2009, Russia hosted the Ladoga-2009 exercise, with Russian warships also taking part in the Zapad-2009 exercise. Other military and specialized equipment included 63 fixed-wing aircraft and 40 helicopters, about 470 armored fighting vehicles, 228 tanks and 234 self-propelled guns and towed artillery systems, mortars and multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS).

On September 16-22, 2011, Russia hosted the Union Shield joint exercises at its Gorokhovetsky and Ashuluk firing ranges in the Nizhny Novgorod and Astrakhan Regions. The drills involved about 12,000 officers and soldiers, with the Russian and Belarusian armed forces committing about 7,000 and 5,000 service personnel respectively. About 200 pieces of military equipment, including about 100 tanks, were also involved.

Russian and Belarusian defense ministries decided to hold the Union Shield-2011 exercises far away from the borders of the NATO member-states, thereby confirming the peace-loving policy of the Union State of Russia and Belarus and the defensive nature of the combined regional army group.

The Zapad-2013 strategic exercises took place on September 20-26. Military units conducted simulated combat operations at the Khmelyovka and Pravdinsky firing ranges in Russia’s Kaliningrad Region, as well as at the Brest, Gozhsky and Obuz-Lesnovsky firing ranges in Belarus.

The exercises involved almost 13,000 Belarusian and 2,500 Russian servicemen, 350 armored vehicles, including about 70 tanks, over 50 artillery pieces and MLRSs, as well as over 50 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. Over 9,000 Russian and over 200 Belarusian servicemen participated in the exercises held on the Russian territory along with about 180 pieces of military equipment, 10 tanks, about 40 fixed-wing aircraft and 10 Baltic Fleet ships.

The Zapad-2013 participants worked out combat training programs and the use of Russian and Belarusian forces for maintaining the Union State’s military security. According to the exercise scenario, extremist groups and gangs penetrated Belarus in order to stage terrorist attacks there and to destabilize the situation in the eastern European country. The units of the Russian Armed Forces were quickly redeployed to Belarus and helped to stabilize the situation in close cooperation with units of the Belarusian Armed Forces. They moved to seal off and destroy "illegal paramilitary units."

The Gozhsky and Khmelyovka firing ranges hosted the final stage of the exercise, with Russian President President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko observing troop operations. Sukhoi Su-25 jets, as well as Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters hit "terrorist group" during the drills. The Mi-8 helicopters also conducted a tactical airdrop mission, sending Russian and Belarusian units behind the lines of imaginary enemies, while artillery systems hit the positions of the "militants." After the positions of the imaginary enemies were suppressed, motorized rifle units of the two countries' armed forces joined the fighting.

Within the framework of the drills, cooperation between different military branches of the Regional Combined Army Group of the Russian and Belarusian Armed Forces was worked out at the Khmelyovka firing range for the first time, with the Russian Navy’s units' assistance in repelling an amphibious landing of imaginary terrorists.

The 2015 Union Shield exercises was held on September 10-16 at firing ranges of Russia’s Western Military District in the Leningrad, Pskov and Kaliningrad Regions, as well as in the areas of the Baltic Sea used for combat training.

The exercises involved over 8,000 servicemen and about 400 pieces of military equipment. The participants of the drills had defeated "illegal paramilitary units" trying to destabilize the situation in the Union State. They also trained the data exchanges between the Union State’s headquarters during joint combat operations and while ensuring the interoperability of advanced troop and weapons control systems.

 

[Hindustani78]

Russia-Belarus Zapad 2017 war games

 

[Hindustani78]

https://sputniknews.com/military/201709171057462638-russia-t-72-tank-drills-test/

The Zapad-2017 Russia-Belarus strategic joint military exercises provided the first large-scale test for crews of the newest T-72B3 tanks, which entered service with the Western Military District, the Russian Defense Ministry's press service said.

In its press release on Sunday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that the ongoing Russia-Belarus military drills had provided the first large-scale test for the crews of the T-72B3, the latest version of the T-72 Soviet main battle tank.

"The T-72B3's crews are made to travel many kilometers across rough terrain with various soils and natural obstacles, as well as conduct combat fire in the daytime and at night, also drilling high-speed maneuvers," the press release said.

It added that "the T-72B3's newest version features a more powerful engine, automatic transmission, a rear-view camera and an upgraded fire control system."

In addition, the tank is equipped with a propulsion unit control system which allows the crew to run the T-72B3 with the help of a display.

The tank's new all-aspect protection system includes multi-layer armor and anti-cumulative shielding, according to the press release.

The T-72B3 is Russia's latest modernized version of the T-72 Soviet battle tank. With its advanced armor protection, the tank is touted by the media as a "super-protected" vehicle.

Apart from the new Relikt explosive reactive armor package, which covers the rear part of the turret, the tank is also fitted with anti-cumulative screens which protect rear parts of the hull.

https://sputniknews.com/russia/201709171057463482-putin-inspect-zapad-2017-drills/
According to the Kremlin press service, Vladimir Putin will inspect Russian and Belarusian troops involved in the Zapad 2017 joint-military drills.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russian President Vladimir Putin will inspect Russian and Belarusian troops involved in the Zapad-2017 joint-military drills in the Leningrad Region on Monday, the Kremlin press service said Sunday.

"On September 18 of this year, Vladimir Putin will arrive in the Leningrad Region. The supreme commander-in-chief will inspect the activities of the armed forces of the Union State of Russia and Belarus during the main stage of the Zapad-2017 joint strategic drills that will take place on Luzhsky range," the press service said in a statement.

The large-scale joint war games involve up to 12,700 servicemen, 70 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, 680 ground-based military vehicles and equipment, including about 250 tanks, 200 artillery systems, multiple rocket launchers and mortars, and 10 warships. The exercises, which run through September 20, are taking place both at Belarusian firing ranges and the firing ranges of Russia's Kaliningrad, Leningrad and Pskov Regions.

https://sputniknews.com/military/201709181057496498-luzhsky-range-exercises-putin/

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday observed anti-terrorism drills during the ongoing Russia-Belarus Zapad-2017 strategic military exercises.

LUZHSKY RANGE (Leningrad Region) (Sputnik) — Russian President Vladimir Putin visited on Monday a training range in the Leningrad region and observed anti-terrorism drills during the ongoing Russia-Belarus Zapad-2017 strategic military exercises.

According to the scenario of the drills, militants from illegal armed groups have broken through the border and formed several detachments of up to 500 people each to carry out terror attacks and subversive activities. The militants seized a number of single engine aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles at border airfields.

"[They] seem to be interested," Putin said, commenting on the matter.

The Russian troops were engaged in repelling the attacks by the militants, using Tunguska gun-missile air defense systems, Pantsir-S1 missile air defense systems and Strela-1 MANPADs to destroy air targets, while T-90 tanks, Su-24 fighter jets, Su-34 tactical bombers and Mi-24, Mi-28 and Ka-52 attack helicopters were hitting the targets on the ground.


The Zapad-2017 (West-2017) military maneuvers started on Thursday on the territory of Russia and Belarus, and will be held through Wednesday. The exercises involve about 12,700 servicemen, including up to 5,500 from Russia and about 7,200 from Belarus.

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© Vayar Military Agency photo via AP
http://tass.com/defense/966192
LUZHSKY PROVING GROUND /Leningrad Region/, September 18. /TASS/. Russia’s Aerospace Force planes demonstrated brilliant performance in one of the key episodes of the Zapad-2017 exercise despite bad weather, the commander of the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Army, Lieutenant-General Aleksandr Duplinsky, has said.

"You were able to see in action different types of aircraft - tactical, army, long-range and military transport planes - operating under the protection of fighter jets. About 50 planes and more than 30 helicopters participated in the exercise," Duplinsky told the media.

Tactical aircraft bombed the hypothetical enemy in cloudy and drizzly weather. Mi-8, Mi-28N and Ka-52 helicopters delivered air borne assault teams to the site of the operation and provided air protection for advancing forces on the ground.

"Regrettably, bad weather prevented those present from seeing the group of Ilyushin-76 planes parachute a tactical assault force. The newest fighters Sukhoi-35 were protecting the airdrop operation. I would like to say that despite bad weather the flight personnel coped with their tasks," Duplinsky said.

To destroy the most sensitive facilities and command centers of the hypothetical enemy supersonic bombers Tupolev-22M3 carried out bombing strikes. Tactical systems Iskander-M and Tochka-U launched missiles. Super-heavy artillery and self-propelled guns hit crucial enemy facilities with high accuracy shells Krasnopol and Smelchak. Drones and laser range finders provided the coordinates.

The joint Russian-Belarussian strategic exercise Zapad-2017 is being held in the territory of the two countries on September 14-20. Participating in it are 12,700 troops (including 10,200 in Belarussian territory), 70 planes and helicopters, 680 pieces of military equipment on the ground, including 250 tanks, 200 artillery pieces, multiple rocket launches and mortars and ten ships.


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September 18, 17:10 UTC+3
The missile with increased capacity flew 480 km and successfully hit a target at a Makat firing range in Kazakhstan

© Press Service of the Eastern Military District for the Pacific Fleet/TASS

http://tass.com/defense/966182

MOSCOW, September 18. /TASS/. Modernized Iskander-M missile has been successfully launched at the maximum range during the Zapad-2017 exercises, hitting a target in Kazakhstan, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Monday.

The launch was carried out at the Kapustin Yar firing range in southern Russia’s Astrakhan region of the Defense Ministry. "Today, a successful launch of the modernized missile system of the Ground Forces, Iskander-M, was carried out," the ministry said.

The missile with increased capacity flew 480 km and successfully hit a target at a Makat firing range in Kazakhstan.

The Iskander-M tactical missile system is designated for making concealed preparations and delivering high-accuracy missile strikes against various objectives in the enemy’s tactical depth within a guaranteed destruction range of 50 to 500 km in various theaters of operation and any conditions, including amid active missile defense and jamming counter-measures.

Iskander tactical ballistic missile systems are capable of hitting both small-size and large-area targets at a distance of up to 500 km to destroy missile and multiple launch rocket systems, long-range artillery guns, aircraft and helicopters at aerodromes, command posts and communications centers.

The Iskander tactical ballistic missile complex includes a launcher, a loader-transporter, a routine maintenance vehicle, a command post vehicle, an information post, an ammunition equipment set and training aids.


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[Hindustani78]

A multiple rocket launcher system fires during the Zapad-2017 war games, held by Russian and Belarussian servicemen, at an undisclosed location in Belarus, September 17, 2017. (REUTERS)

.Russian President Vladimir Putin, center, speaks to Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, as Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov, second right, looks on during a military exercise at a training ground at the Luzhsky Range, near St. Petersburg, Russia, Monday, Sept. 18, 2017. (AP)

 

[Hindustani78]

https://www.unian.info/world/2297851-russia-may-deploy-arms-depots-in-belarus.html

14 December 2017

On November 14, an agreement came into force between the governments of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation on joint technical support of the regional grouping of troops of the two states.

As follows from the agreement, technical support of a regional grouping of troops shall be carried out by forces and means of the two states "in the interests of their national units of the regional grouping of troops, and, if necessary, in the interests of all the troops that make up the grouping," Naviny.by reports.

The document also says that additional armament, military equipment, and other material means to the Belarusian part of the regional grouping of troops shall be provided by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in the agreed volumes at the expense of available reserves of the armed forces of the Russian Federation amid the rising military threat to the Union State and in time of war.


In the period of "direct threat of aggression," stocks of weapons, military equipment, and other material means destined for the Russian part of the regional grouping of troops can be redeployed to a stationary material-technical base of the armed forces of Belarus.

According to experts, the above two provisions are key in the document.


Judging from the context of the document, the Belarusian part of the regional grouping of troops will be provided with additional weapons, military equipment, and other material means at the expense of the Russian Defense Ministry's reserves when the number of Belarusian troops is raised to a wartime minimum amid the growing military threat and the outbreak of war.

In this case, the provisions of the Treaty on the Limitation of Conventional Arms in Europe, which, however, Russia no longer complies with, will lose any meaning whatsoever.

As the experience of the Zapad 2017 military drills has shown, the transfer time for heavy weapons and combat equipment to be redeployed by rail from Yaroslavl (and even from Moscow) to the western borders of the union state is too great by the standards of modern warfare.

The way out is the preliminary storage of heavy weapons and military equipment in Belarus with a subsequent deployment of troops by air.

It is noted that, contrary to fears on the part of some observers, storage of weapons for the Russian forces on the Belarusian territory will not acquire the status of a military base and will fall under the jurisdiction of Belarus: the Russian military will not be able to use these reserves at any time.

Theoretically, they could protect this property, but there is a number of restrictions. In particular, Russian military can stay on the Belarusian territory for 2 months. After that, they must leave, and others come to their place. The procedure is costly and disheartening, and it is unlikely to be used. It is likely that weapons, military equipment, and other military reserves stored in the Belarusian territory will be guarded by the Belarusian military or paramilitary guards subordinated to the Ministry of Internal Affairs," the experts say.