The Alliance headed by the USA is increasing its offensive potential at Western borders of the Union state of Russia and Belarus, Moscow would have to take appropriate defensive measures, said the Minister of defence of the Russian Federation General of the army Sergei Shoigu said at the session of the joint Collegium of the defense ministries of Russia and Belarus.
“On the Western borders of the Union state of the US and other NATO members actively expanding its offensive capabilities, opening new bases and developing military infrastructure. Stop trying to impose their will on other countries through economic and political dictatorship and military force. Is an open information war,” — said Shoigu.
According to the Minister, the actions of NATO undermines strategic stability in the region. Russia, he said, forced to take retaliatory defensive measures. At the same time, Shoigu said that Russia and Belarus currently demonstrate a high level of interaction that allows us to successfully solve “the issues of strengthening the defense potential of the Union state”.
“This approach is most relevant right now, when the international mechanisms to resolve the crisis, stalled, and tensions are very close to our borders,” said Shoigu.
October 26, during the meeting of defense Ministers of the NATO countries, it was announced that several NATO countries joined the initiative of Canada, Germany, great Britain and the United States on the deployment on the Eastern borders of the Alliance “of multinational battalions.”
In the words of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Albania, Italy, Poland and Slovenia will complement the battalion, headed by Canada, Latvia. Belgium, Croatia, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Norway will join the battalion, led by Germany, in Lithuania. Denmark and France will join the battalion in Estonia, which is headed by Britain. While Romania and the UK, in turn, will contribute to the battalion under the leadership of the United States in Poland. “Our forces will be truly multinational. This decision is a clear statement: NATO acts as a single entity. The attack on the ally would be treated as attack on all of us,” — said Stoltenberg.
That the countries of the Alliance agreed to create four battalions in the Baltic States and Poland, Stoltenberg said at the beginning of July this year at the summit in Warsaw. He noted that the battalions will be created as a “deterrent measures” and that almost all member countries of the Alliance will take part in the formation of these units.
Speaking at the meeting of the International discussion club “Valdai” on 27 October, Putin said that “the West is constantly stamped fictitious, mythical [views], like the notorious Russian military threat”. He called such speculation “ridiculous”.
According to the President, statements about the Russian threat associated with willingness to increase military budgets. “Indeed, it is a profitable lesson: can a new military budgets to punch in their own countries, to bend the allies in the interests of one superpower to expand NATO, to bring the infrastructure of the Alliance, military units, new equipment to our borders,” — said the President of Russia.
