Belarus ready to respond swiftly to threats during Russia joint military exercises

The Belarusian Ministry of Defence has reiterated its stance that while Belarus poses no threat to third countries, it remains fully prepared to respond decisively to any provocations during the forthcoming joint military exercises, “Zapad-2025”, with Russia.

Major General Pavel Muraveiko Chief of the General Staff - First Deputy Defence Minister of Belarus, made the remarks during a recent briefing, Caliber.Az reports, citing Belarus media.

Muraveiko emphasized that the primary objective of the drills is to enhance the operational readiness and coordination of Belarusian Armed Forces alongside their Russian counterparts.

“I want to emphasize once again that we do not pose a threat to third countries and aim to address issues related to the preparation of our Armed Forces in cooperation with allied troops,” Muraveiko stated.

He further highlighted the vigilant monitoring of military activities near Belarus’ borders and warned that Minsk is poised to counteract any hostile or provocative maneuvers that may arise during the “Zapad-2025” exercises.

The Belarusian Defence Ministry’s press service quoted him as saying, “We are closely tracking all military activity near our borders and are prepared to respond to any provocations that may occur during the ‘Zapad-2025’ exercise.”

The exercises started on September 12 in Belarus and Russia and will last through September 16. They are intended to showcase close defence ties between Moscow and Minsk, as well as Russia's military might.

The maneuvers follow September 10 incursion of Russian drones into Polish airspace earlier this week that fueled longstanding fears that the hostilities in Ukraine could trigger a wider conflict. The Russian military said it wasn’t targeting Poland, and Belarus suggested drones veered off course, but European leaders described it as a deliberate provocation, forcing NATO allies to confront a potential threat in its airspace for the first time.

By Vafa Guliyeva