Russia calls for stronger defence ties with Belarus amid conflict with NATO

Following diplomatic rift with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Moscow has now engaged in beefing up military ties with neighbouring Belarus, the Associated Press reported on Thursday. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu meet Belarusian counterpart and top brass military personnel to discuss the modernisation of shared army infrastructure. Both the countries extended agreements on two Russian Facilities in Belarus and a naval communication centre as of now, Shoigu said in a statement. 

The countries have agreed to share an early warning radar in the Brest region near Poland and Naval communications centre in Vileyka near Minsk (capital of Belarus), Shoigu mentioned. It is to be noted that Moscow has remained a strong ally of Belarus due to Kremlin's unhindered support to Belarusian authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko. The former had also stood by Lukashenko during Western impositions after Belarus' crackdown on protestors after the president's re-election. 

Russian Defence Minister raises concern over NATO exercise near borders 

Defence minister Shoigu expressed concerns about NATO exercised near Russian borders, dubbing it to be a threat to security. On Wednesday, Shoigu accused the alliance of performing drills depicting confrontation scenarios with Russia. He also pointed out NATO deployment in borders along with Poland and the Baltics, in addition to, nuclear missile defence facilities in Romania and Poland. Meanwhile, NATO has also blamed Russia for conducting "destabilizing" military exercises near borders. 

Russia suspends NATO mission 

In a retaliatory move to counter the expulsion of eight members of the Russian military alliance, Moscow on October 18 announced disengagement with the intergovernmental military alliance saying that the NATO Mission in Moscow would be stripped of their accreditation from November 1. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, “These NATO actions have shown that the bloc is not interested in an equal dialogue or joint efforts to defuse military-political tension. Its policy towards Russia is becoming increasingly more aggressive. The myth about the alleged “Russian threat” is being promoted, in part, to strengthen the bloc’s internal affinity and to make it look important in the current geopolitical circumstances.”

It is to be noted that NATO had suspended practical operations with Russia in 2014 after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula of Ukraine. As per The Guardian, although, NATO kept channels open for high-level military talks, both the parties had only met "sporadically." 

(With inputs from AP)

(Image: AP/representative image)