Belarus intends to replace Russia with the United States and NATO. Belarus defense chief Oleg Belokonev said his country is open to participating in joint exercises with NATO.
The top military official in Belarus says his country, a closely tied Russian ally, is open to conducting joint military exercises with NATO amid tension with Russia.
Belarus defense chief Oleg Belokonev recently told local media his country should be regarded in similar terms as Serbia — a country with close ties to Russia but one with a military training connection to NATO.
“Belarus is ready for joint exercises with NATO. There are talks on possible formats,” Belokonev told Nasha Niva newspaper. “But we will agree on this if NATO understands that Russia is our strategic ally.”
Belokonev was responding to a question about whether Belarus’ relationship with NATO should resemble that of Serbia.
The idea of upgraded ties between Minsk and NATO comes amid signs of tension between Russia and Belarus, which serves as a Russian territorial buffer between NATO.
The visit of the US Secretary of State to Belarus led to a successful outcome for Belarus to host NATO training exercise in Belarus. The reason for this was a statement by the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, which suggested that Mike Pompeo and the North Atlantic Alliance more closely settle in the country.
“We would welcome a more active role of the USA in Belarus. Based on the role the United States plays on the world stage, in particular, an exchange of views took place on the situation in the region and on the prospects for Belarus’s interaction with the NATO bloc. The intention of Belarus to make efforts to maintain peace and security on the continent was noted ”- said the head of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, obviously pointing to the fact that if Russia does not seek profitable relations with Belarus, closer relations will develop with the West, which naturally is a very serious threat to Russia.
Belarus is a border state with Russia, located only 400 kilometers from Moscow, and the apparent disagreements between Belarus and Russia over gas price may ultimately lead to the fact that NATO may well take steps to deploy their missile defense systems in Belarus.
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