Russia sends paratroopers to Belarus for drills near Poland

MOSCOW — Russia sent paratroopers to Belarus connected Friday successful a amusement of enactment for its state amid tensions implicit migrants and refugees amassing connected the Belarus-Poland border.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that arsenic portion of associated warfare games, astir 250 Russian paratroopers parachuted from heavylift Il-76 transport planes into the Grodno portion of Belarus, which borders Poland. It said the paratroopers re-boarded the transport planes and flew backmost to Russia aft the exercise.

The Belarusian subject said the workout involving a battalion of Russian paratroopers was intended to trial the readiness of the allies’ accelerated effect forces owed to an “increase of subject activities adjacent the Belarusian border.”

It said the drills that progressive Belarusian aerial defence assets, chopper gunships and different forces envisaged targeting force scouts and amerciable equipped formations, on with different tasks.

Earlier this week, Russia sent nuclear-capable strategical bombers connected patrol missions implicit Belarus for 2 consecutive days. Russia’s lawman U.N. ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, told reporters astatine U.N. office successful New York that the flights came successful effect to a monolithic buildup connected the Polish-Belarusian border.

Russia has powerfully supported Belarus amid a tense standoff this week arsenic thousands of migrants and refugees, astir of them from the Middle East, gathered connected the Belarusian broadside of the borderline with Poland successful hopes of crossing into the European Union.

The EU has accused Belarus’ authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko, of encouraging amerciable borderline crossings arsenic a “hybrid attack” to retaliate against EU sanctions connected his authorities for its crackdown connected home protests aft Lukashenko’s disputed 2020 reelection.

Belarus denies the allegations but has said it volition nary longer halt refugees and migrants from trying to participate the EU.

The Belarusian Defense Ministry has accused Poland of an “unprecedented” subject buildup connected the border, saying that migration power did not warrant the attraction of 15,000 troops backed by tanks, aerial defence assets and different weapons.

“I’d similar to pass hotheads not to overestimate their capabilities,” Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said Friday. “Language of ultimatums, threats and blackmail is not acceptable. Belarus equipped forces are acceptable to respond harshly to immoderate attacks.”

Russia and Belarus person a national statement envisaging adjacent governmental and subject ties. Lukashenko has stressed the request to boost subject practice successful the look of what helium has described arsenic assertive actions by NATO allies.