Russia and Belarus have begun a 10-day joint military exercise in the midst of persistent worries of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Belarus is a staunch Russian ally with a lengthy border with Ukraine.
The drills, which are estimated to be Russia’s largest deployment to Belarus since the Cold War, were dubbed a “violent gesture” by France. Ukraine claims they are the result of “psychological pressure”
Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, stated on Thursday that Europe is facing its worst security crisis in decades.
Despite amassing more than 100,000 troops along the border, Russia has consistently denied any intention of invading Ukraine. However, the United States and other Western countries have warned that an assault may occur at any time.
The drills, known as Allied Resolve 2022, are taking place along the Belarusian-Ukrainian border, which is little over 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) long.
There are concerns that if Russia attempts to invade Ukraine, the drills will bring Russian forces closer to the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, making an attack on the city easier.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko is a close supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the two nations have established a “Union State” that involves economic and military unification. Following a disputed election in 2020 that sparked riots in Belarus, the Kremlin backed Mr. Lukashenko.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Secretary of the United Kingdom, Liz Truss, met with her Russian colleague, Sergei Lavrov, in Moscow on Thursday. She stated that if Russia was serious about using diplomacy to calm the problem, it should withdraw its soldiers from the Ukrainian border.
Mr. Lavrov expressed dissatisfaction with the negotiations, accusing Western politicians of exploiting Ukraine as a “crutch” to “improve their ratings”
Moscow has stated that it cannot accept that Ukraine, a former Soviet republic with profound social and cultural links to Russia, may one day join the Western defence alliance NATO, and has insisted that this be ruled out. Since 2014, it has backed an armed insurgency in eastern Ukraine.
More discussions aimed at easing tensions are due to take place later on Thursday, with Russian and Ukrainian envoys joining France and Germany, known as the Normandy quartet.
Some argue that a fresh emphasis on the so-called Minsk accords, which tried to end the fighting in eastern Ukraine, may be used to calm the present crisis.
In 2014-2015, Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany approved the agreements.