. | . |
Belarus leader praises Russia-led drills, eyes $1 bln arms deal By Anna SMOLCHENKO Moscow (AFP) Sept 12, 2021 Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday said Minsk planned to buy $1 billion worth of Russian arms as he oversaw massive Moscow-led military drills that rattled some EU countries. Sporting green military uniform at a test range near the city of Baranovichi in western Belarus, the strongman praised Russian and Belarusian troops for their "high state of readiness" to jointly defend their borders and counter what he called "hybrid aggression" from the West. On Friday, Russia and Belarus launched military drills involving about 200,000 personnel, one of Moscow's biggest exercises in recent years. President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to inspect the drills in Russia on Monday, ahead of three-day parliamentary elections later this week, the Kremlin said. "We cannot relax, taking into account the experience of 1941," Lukashenko said, referring to the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany. Lukashenko, who has been ostracised by the West for cracking down on opposition protests following a disputed election last year, has had to increasingly lean on Moscow. The two leaders have been in talks to integrate their two countries more closely. Lukashenko held the latest round of discussions with Putin in Moscow earlier this week and said on Sunday he wanted to buy Russia's S-400 air defence systems with a view to placing them on his country's border with Western-backed Ukraine. "We should get ready -- our border with Ukraine is 1,200 kilometres (750 miles)," Lukashenko told reporters during the exercises, revealing details of his eight-hour talks with Putin. "And we discussed that we could use the S-400s," he said, adding that the leaders had dedicated more than three hours to issues of defence and security. Lukashenko also thanked Putin for agreeing to supply Belarus with weapons valued at more than $1 billion by 2025. "I will not disclose the sum although this is also not a huge secret -- that's more than a billion dollars," Lukashenko told local reporters. The consignment included about 10 planes, several dozen helicopters and a Tor surface-to-air missile system, the Belarus president said. - 'Sovereignty and independence' - At the drills, Lukashenko hailed Russian and Belarusian troops. "Your actions during the exercises vividly confirmed a high state of readiness of the armies of our countries and the Belarusian people to jointly secure their sovereignty and independence," he said. The massive drills have rattled a number of EU countries, with Poland introducing a state of emergency along its eastern border, the first time the measure has been used since the fall of Communism. Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has warned of possible "provocations" and said the exercises were one reason Warsaw introduced the state of emergency. On the eve of the exercise, Putin said the drills were "not directed against anyone" and Lukashenko struck the same note on Sunday. "We are not aiming our rockets at neighbouring countries. We are getting ready to defend our land," he said in remarks released by his office. "The Belarusian-Russian union does not need extra lands." Putin is expected in the Belarusian capital Minsk to sign a raft of integration agreements on November 4, and Lukashenko said the two would also hold talks next month. The Kremlin said troops from India, Mongolia, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan would also take part in the joint exercises. The Russian defence ministry said on Sunday the two countries' troops would return to their bases by mid-October.
Greece to discuss 5-year US defence deal; France sells 6 Rafale fighters Athens (AFP) Sept 12, 2021 Greece and the US are in talks to extend their defence deals by five years, instead of one-year renewals now in force, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Sunday. "We are discussing a five-year extension to the defence cooperation agreement, so that we don't have to renew it on an annual basis," Mitsotakis told a news conference at the Thessaloniki International Fair. There would be a "more important US presence in our country, possibly in areas where they currently do not have a presenc ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |