Status: 02/20/2022 1:00 p.m
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It hadn’t been ruled out, but now it’s certain: the Russian troops will remain in Belarus for the time being. The reason for the extension was the escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine.
Amid the deepening Ukraine crisis, Belarus has announced an extension of joint military exercises with Russia. Against the background of the “escalation” of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, President Alexander Lukashenko and his Russian colleague Vladimir Putin decided to “continue to check the combat readiness of the armed forces of the Union state,” the Belarusian Defense Ministry said.
With the announcement, Lukashenko and Putin have already confirmed hints from the past week. The reason for the extension was the increasing military activities on the borders with Belarus and Russia and the escalation of the situation in eastern Ukraine. Belarus and Russia have been holding a major maneuver together for the past ten days. It was supposed to end today. However, it was unclear how many Russian soldiers would remain in the neighboring country.
So far, there has been no reaction from the Russian side. The Kremlin had actually promised that all Russian troops should leave Belarus after the end of the maneuvers. However, the West has repeatedly expressed doubts about this representation.
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Assessment by ARD correspondent Ina Ruck from Moscow
The announcement comes as no surprise. The Belarusian head of state Lukashenko said last week that he and President Putin would still decide how long the Russian armed forces would remain. The withdrawal could take place in a day, but also in a month.
This is not good news for Ukraine: Russian troops continue to threaten the country from this direction as well. Belarus borders northwestern Ukraine, and the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, is about 150 kilometers from the border.
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30,000 soldiers in Belarus
According to US estimates, Russia has transferred around 30,000 soldiers to Belarus for the maneuvers that have been ongoing since February 10. A massive Russian troop deployment on the Ukrainian border and the Belarusian-Russian maneuvers are fueling fears of an impending major Russian attack on Ukraine.
In the embattled east of Ukraine, violence has been increasing for days. The Ukrainian army and the pro-Russian separatists in the conflict area recently accused each other of numerous violations of the ceasefire.
False flag attack warnings
Most recently, the separatists ordered a “general mobilization” and at the same time called on women, children and the elderly to leave the country for Russia. The US and NATO warned of a so-called false flag attack by Russia. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said there were signs that “Russia is preparing to create a pretext for an attack on Ukraine”.
Situation on the Ukrainian-Russian border still unclear
Birgit Virnich, ARD Moscow, currently Kiev, daily news at 8:00 p.m., February 20, 2022
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The increasing ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine, the “false allegations” of “genocide” in Donbass and the evacuation of areas controlled by the pro-Russian separatists are “worrying signs”. Russia and the former Soviet republic maintain very close relations. Both states cooperate within the framework of the Belarusian-Russian Union, primarily in the areas of defense and economic policy.
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