MINSK, 28 March (BelTA) – About 1,000 military personnel and over 200 army vehicles, special vehicles, and automobiles, about ten aircraft and helicopters have been deployed for a Belarusian-Russian exercise, which is scheduled to take place in Vitebsk Oblast on 28 March – 6 April, BelTA learned from the Belarusian Defense Ministry website.
The 103rd Independent Guards Air Assault Brigade, assets and units of the special operations forces of the Belarusian army are taking part in the scheduled tactical exercise in addition to an air assault company of the 217th Air Assault Regiment of the 98th Air Assault Division of the Russian army.
The exercise is supervised by the chief of the Special Operations Command of the Belarusian army. The exercise will involve three phases, with the active one scheduled for 1-5 April.
The Belarusian and Russian air assault units will practice joint operations meant to find, block, and destroy sabotage and reconnaissance forces, tactical airdropped forces, and illegal armed units of the aggressor. Reconnaissance forces, artillery and aviation units will be used in the course of the exercise.
The tactical exercise is supposed to test the readiness of Belarusian and Russian army units to carry out their missions in a complicated rapidly changing environment. The exercise will also test new theoretical guidelines from directive documents and the joint deployment of army units in the course of special operations. The exercise will also test the weapons and military hardware that special operations forces are supposed to put into service soon.
Such combat training exercises are held in exercise areas in Belarus and Russia every year.
The exercise represents the continuation of another stage in preparations for the Belarusian-Russian strategic army exercise Zapad 2017 (West 2017).
