Russia rejects allegations that it will use war games to launch invasions on Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine

A total of almost 13,000 Russian and Belarussian servicemen and almost 700 pieces of military hardware will be used in the Zapad 2017 exercises next month, Russian news agencies cited Russian Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin as saying.

By: Reuters
Moscow | Updated: August 29, 2017 05:02 PM IST

2 min read

Russian soldiers walk near the Russian Defense Ministry building prior to a concert for the all-Russian festival "Russian Army in 2016" in Moscow, Russia, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016. The military festival features army bands, dancers and singers. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russia said on Tuesday joint war games with Belarus would be purely defensive in nature and rejected what it said were false allegations it might use the drills as a springboard to launch invasions of Poland, Lithuania or Ukraine. A total of almost 13,000 Russian and Belarussian servicemen and almost 700 pieces of military hardware will be used in the Zapad 2017 exercises next month, Russian news agencies cited Russian Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin as saying.

Those numbers were in line with international rules, he was cited as saying. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said the alliance will closely watch the exercises and has called for them to be held in an open and legal manner.

Belarussian Deputy Defence Minister Oleg Belokonev said on Tuesday that all troops and equipment brought into Belarus for the war games would be withdrawn afterwards, the Interfax news agency reported.

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