The Russian-Belarusian exercises “Shield of the Union-2023” will begin on Friday in Russia and will last until September 26.
The Belarusian Defense Ministry announced the exercises in February. At that time, Minsk stressed that “the obvious fact is a significant deepening of cooperation with the Russian Federation in the interests of ensuring the defense capability of the Union State in the face of current challenges and threats.”
The Belarusian Defense Ministry also stated that the military alliance “is an essential condition for the further development of both states.”
In 2021, Russian Defense Minister General of the Army Sergei Shoigu called the “Shield of the Union” a key event to ensure the military security of Russia and Belarus.
The exercises “Shield of the Union” are held once every two years, alternately on the territory of the two countries of the Union State. The concept of the exercises was developed taking into account the analysis of possible options for the emergence of a threat to the military security of the Union State and the outbreak of a military conflict.
A source: https://e-cis.info/news/568/112294/
