Belarus forms special operations brigade near Ukraine’s border
Photo: Belarus creates special operations forces brigade near Ukraine (mil.by)
Belarus is creating a Special Operations Forces brigade. The new military unit will be based in the Gomel region, on the border with Ukraine, according to Vadim Denisenko, commander of Belarus' special operations forces.
"A decision was made to strengthen the southern sector. Today, this is the most turbulent area, so to speak, which keeps us all on our toes," he said.
Belarus strengthening its army
Belarus has recently been trying to modernize its army and is also conducting joint exercises with Russia and a number of Asian countries.
For example, joint military exercises between Russia and Belarus, West-2025, are scheduled for mid-September. Moscow claims that the maneuvers will be purely defensive and aimed at practicing responses to possible aggression against the so-called Union State.
At the same time, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi warned that these exercises could be used as a cover for the covert formation of offensive military groups.
"In other words, the visibility of the exercises is the most acceptable way to redeploy, transfer troops, concentrate them in a certain direction, and create troop formations," Syrskyi explains.
At the same time, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense announced the transfer of the strategic military exercises West-2025 deeper into the country, away from the borders with the EU. This should reduce the anxiety of neighboring countries, in particular Poland and Lithuania.
