Contents tagged with Zapad 2017
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Estonian general: during Zapad-2017 exercises, Russia simulated war with NATO
In an interview with the newspaper Bild, General Riho Terras, Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces said that he believes that Russia modeled war with NATO during the Zapad 2017 exercises.
"I’ll be blunt: during the Zapad 2017 exercises, Russia simulated a full-scale military attack against NATO. It was not directed only against the Baltic states, as the theater of exercises stretched from the North to the Black Sea. The scale and the area of maneuvers were much larger than officially …
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Lavrov: US used Russian Zapad-2017 exercises as a pretext to deploy more troops to Poland and Baltics
Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview for Belarusian television that the US and NATO fears over the Zapad-2017 military exercises were just a pretext for the deployment of troops in Poland and the Baltic States.
According to Lavrov, "the West was not so much afraid but tried to use the exercises as an excuse to start hysteria."
"Everyone who wanted to come to these exercises found that everything was transparent. But, amid the growing hysteria, our American colleagues …
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Putin calls on Russian companies to prepare to step up military production
Russian President Vladimir Putin urged his country’s enterprises, regardless of the form of ownership, to prepare for an increase in military production. He made a statement to this effect on November 22 during a meeting with the leaders of the Russian Defense Ministry, Defense and Industrial Complex, and the heads of various ministries and regions.
“The economy’s ability to quickly increase the quantities of defensive production and services at the right time is one of the most important …
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Polish defense minister: Russia preparing for offensive operations
The recent Zapad 2017 large-scale Russian-Belarusian military exercises are evidence that Russia is preparing for offensive operations, said Polish Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz, as reported by Ukrinform.
“The Zapad 2017 exercises ended two months ago. They were held in the space between the Arctic Ocean and the Black Sea, and even involved the launches of Iskander ballistic missiles, which can carry nuclear warheads. The Russians were not preparing for defense, but for aggression,” …
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NATO to discuss with Russia the true number of troops in Zapad-2017 exercises
The true number of Russian Army personnel that were involved in the recent Zapad-2017 exercises in Belarus will be discussed during the next NATO-Russia meeting, reported the German newspaper Welt, citing its sources in the headquarters of the Alliance.
“We will very clearly say that we are thinking about such actions,” the newspaper quotes the diplomat as saying.
The Alliance has serious reasons to believe that it wasn’t 12,700 soldiers that took part in the exercises – the number that …
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Media: NATO prepares report accusing Russia of lying about Zapad-2017 military exercise
NATO experts analyzed satellite images of the Zapad 2017 exercises and found tens of thousands of soldiers, while Russia assured that fewer than 13,000 military men participated in the maneuvers, as reported by Die Welt, citing sources in NATO.
Exercises with military formations exceeding 13,000 people require the participation of observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), however, they were not present at the maneuvers.
According to Die Welt, NATO is going …
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Ministry of Defense of Ukraine: Six thousand Russian troops still in Belarus after Zapad 2017 Exercises
About six thousand Russian soldiers who took part in joint military maneuvers of the Zapad 2017 exercises are still in Belarus, stated Andrei Lysenko, press secretary of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine on ATO issues, according to news agency UNN.
“A combination of Russian and Belarusian forces, totaling about 12,000 troops, was in Belarus. Of these, 5,800 were from Russia. The military understands that the headquarters and other units remain in the territory of Belarus, and international …
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USA: Number of troops participating in Zapad-2017 military exercises was more than declared by Russia
Washington is not afraid of a possible build-up of the Russian military presence at the borders of NATO countries after the Zapad 2017 exercises, as indicated by the Permanent Representative of the United States to NATO, Kay Bailey Hutchison, in response to questions from The Washington Post.
"I cannot say for sure, but our people have been closely watching and they have no fears," the diplomat said. She added that the exercises were a "big show." "We watched it as much as we could," …
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Russia announces withdrawal of all troops from Belarus after Zapad-2017 exercises
A week after the completion of the Zapad-2017 exercises, Russia has withdrawn its last troops from the territory of Belarus, the press service for the exercises reports.
It is reported that the last Russian echelon with military equipment and personnel has gone to its point of permanent deployment.
"The last train with personnel and equipment of units of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation that took part in the SSU-Zapad-2017 has departed for home from one of the railway stations in …
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Media: Russia-NATO Council frozen until the end of the year
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization has frozen the NATO-Russia Council until the end of the year, reports the newspaper Izvestia, citing Russian diplomatic sources.
It is noted that the pretext for such a step was the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 exercises, which took place from September 14-20 at a training area in Belarus, as well as in the Kaliningrad, Leningrad, and Peskov oblasts in the Russian Federation.
“The Russia-NATO Council will be frozen until the end of this year, at the …