Upcoming Russia-Belarus Tactical Flight Drills Defensive in Nature: Minsk

MINSK (Sputnik) - Belarus and Russia's joint flight-tactical exercises scheduled to start on January 16 are defensive in their nature and will involve reconnaissance and counterattack exercises, First Deputy State Secretary of Belarus' Security Council Pavel Muraveiko said on Sunday.

On January 8, the Belarusian Defense Ministry said that the aviation units of the Belarusian and Russian armed forces will hold joint tactical flight training from January 16 to February 1. It was also reported that the aviation component of the Russian aerospace forces had arrived in Belarus for drills.

"The exercises are purely defensive in nature, and will focus on aerial reconnaissance, air strikes as well as air defense of critical facilities and communication lines," Muraveiko told Canadian broadcaster, dispelling speculations that the drills could be a threat to Ukraine.

The senior official stressed that such exercises are held regularly, so this year's drills have nothing going on behind the scenes.

"As for the exercise itself, it will be a set of activities to train our and Russian aviation in carrying out their respective combat tasks. The exercise will involve airfields and training grounds on the territory of the Republic of Belarus, where aviation units of both our and Russian units will operate shoulder to shoulder or wing to wing," Muraveiko said.

Meanwhile, Minsk is prepared for any provocations from Kiev, he said, adding that there is some dialogue between border administrations of Belarus and Ukraine, which does not always yield positive results.

As for other military exercises, Belarus will host three out of four planned Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) drills in September. Belarus’ territorial defense exercises are also planned for the first quarter of this year, Muraveiko noted.

Belarus, this year's CSTO chair, will also organize an international conference on Eurasian security, a fairly broad dialogue at the level of foreign ministers, defense ministers, and security council secretaries "along the CSTO-China lines," Muraveiko said.