Amid intense tension with the West, sources claim that Russia is enhancing its military capabilities both in the air and on the ground in Belarus.
Five military airfields in the landlocked authoritarian state that borders NATO members Poland and Lithuania have been used by Russian soldiers for “intense training.”
The actions follow Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko’s recent declaration of support for Putin’s conflict with Ukraine while on a visit to Moscow.
However, it will disappoint his generals, who issued a remarkable open letter to the autocrat pleading with him to refrain from intervening in the war in Ukraine, calling such a course of action “absolute suicide.”
They went a step further, labelling the Russians as trying to ‘destroy the sovereignty’ of Belarus.
In spite of this, some 20 top air force fighter pilots recently arrived by regular train from Moscow, reported Belarusky Gayun, a Telegram channel monitoring troops movements.
Additionally, it is claimed that Russia has taken control of the Belarusian air base Prybytki, where it has already stationed an S-400 battalion equipped with Pantsir and Iskander missiles.
The fifth brigade of the special forces officers noted that Clause One of the Belarus Constitution had been violated by Russia’s highest political leadership.
The Belarus Republic “maintains dominance and complete power on its own territory” according to this clause, they stated.
It also has autonomy for its own domestic and international policies.
Additionally, they were adamantly opposed to cooperating with Putin in his conflict with Ukraine, whom they referred to as a “friend of our state,” and saw such an action as “the annihilation of Belarus’ sovereignty.”
‘To join Russia in its fight against Ukraine would be an act of pure suicide.’
Nevertheless, according to Belarusky Gayun, Russian missile defense system convoys were observed traveling toward the Belarus-Poland border.
The generals in Belarus will be even more alarmed by the statement that “there are roughly 10 units in the column, among them communication vehicles based on KamAZ and tilt trucks, some towing generators, and one flying the flag of the USSR.”
The identifying symbol “V” is on the doors of the vehicles, which are painted in camouflage colors.
More than a dozen training stations in Belarus have extended drills involving both Russian and Belarusian military to approximately July 15 or 16, in a move that has been called “atypical,” according to sources.
‘About 20 pilots from Russia arrived in Baranavichy.… on a regular Moscow-Brest train,’ said the channel.
‘This is not the first report that the Russian military has again begun to arrive in Belarus on ordinary passenger trains.
‘There is a certain correlation between the arrival of the Russian military and an increase in…air training.’
Russia has previously deployed in Belarus to attack Ukraine.
But Belarus also shares borders with Poland and Lithuania, and the renewed vigor may indicate that Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin, who are allies in Minsk, are bolstering defenses along the NATO border.
On the Minsk-Brest route, three S-300 air defense systems have been spotted traveling in the direction of the Polish border.
In the summer of 2020, when massive demonstrations erupted in Belarus following a rigged election that saw Lukashenko maintain power, one autocrat came to another’s defense.
When the local workers went on strike in protest, Putin gave security personnel, financial assistance, and even TV presenters to spew official propaganda.
The price for saving Lukashenko’s regime from a democratic uprising now appears to be the sovereignty of Belarus, with Putin in effect occupying the country with his military.
According to governor Alexander Bogomaz, a bomb detonated on a train track in the Bryansk area of Russia.
This looks to be the most recent in a string of sabotage attempts on Russian train networks.
The unidentified offenders’ intention appears to be to obstruct the movement of soldiers and weapons using railways.
In recent weeks, many of such incidents have been documented.
Fighter pilots are apparently practicing takeoffs and rapid climbs in Baranavichy in the Brest area, close to the Polish border.
Training for the Mi-8 helicopter has been going on since June 16.
‘Typically, such training takes place a couple of times a year, but in three weeks their annual rate has already been exceeded,’ said the channel.
The movements by Putin’s forces come after NATO states agreed to boost their presence in countries bordering Russia.