MINSK, 24 October (BelTA) – Plans for a permanent U.S. military presence in Poland are counterproductive, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a joint board meeting of the Defense Ministries of Belarus and Russia in Minsk on 24 October, BelTA has learned.
“The plans of the Polish government to host a permanent U.S. military base on its territory are counterproductive and do not contribute to stability and national security. In this regard, we will have to take retaliatory measures and be ready to neutralize any possible military threat in all directions. I would like to reiterate that we do not seek military confrontation with the West and that we aim to develop cooperation across a wide range of security issues,” Sergei Shoigu said.
In his words, NATO's military activity has reached unprecedented levels since the Cold War. “The alliance seeks to strengthen its advanced military presence on the eastern flank. For this, NATO is actively using the Russian threat myth. The scale of operational and combat training at our borders has been growing, and their intensity is increasing. The bloc is working out offensive operations. The alliance is actively engaging non-bloc countries. Geographic areas for major military exercises are being chosen closer and closer to the Russian border. For example, another NATO exercise starts in Norway on 25 October. It is noteworthy that the number of forces and hardware involved in the exercise has been increased in recent weeks. According to the specified data, the drill will involve 50,000 military personnel, 120 aircraft, 60 ships and more than 10,000 weapons and military hardware,” Sergei Shoigu said.
Sergei Shoigu also took note of a significant increase in NATO's intelligence activity in the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea region. This year alone, Russian aircraft have been scrambled more than 120 times to intercept possible border violators. Tensions are also mounting in connection with the West's actions to increase military mobility, the ultimate goal of which is to ensure rapid deployment of U.S. troops across Europe. “Coordination centers have been set up, advanced airfields have been prepared, and seaports have been upgraded for the deployment of troops in the Baltic and Eastern European countries. A system is being developed for property and weapons prepositioning. Efforts to improve the infrastructure are designed to minimize the period of redeployment of troops from deep rear to external borders and thereby increase the offensive capability,” the minister said.
“We believe that, with the assistance of the west, the situation in the Middle East region eroded which created the conditions for the emergence of a true terrorist stronghold in Syria. The situation there was reversed only with the help from Russia, he said. Now maximum efforts are being taken to restore peaceful life in Syria. The Russian side welcomes any form of participation of partners and allies in this matter.
