Russia, Belarus kick off massive joint drills, worrying NATO

The army forces of Russia and Belarus have started joint military drills in the Baltic Sea and across the territory of their countries, causing alarm in some European Union states and NATO countries.

The week-long military exercises, dubbed Zapad-2021, began on Thursday, with top military leaders from the two countries attending the opening ceremony of the war games in western Russia.

The Russian defense ministry said up to 200,000 military personnel, some 80 aircraft and helicopters, up to 15 ships and nearly 300 tanks would take part.

The ministry added that the live fire drills, which mark the culmination of a bigger three-month exercise, involve military personnel from Armenia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia.

Russian Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov said the drills were purely defensive in nature and would give Moscow and Minsk a chance to improve the way their respective militaries work together.

The exercise, which comes at a time of heightened tensions between the West and Belarus, will run until September 16.

NATO officials have warned that the drills increase the risk of an accident or miscalculation that could foment a crisis.

The opening ceremony of the war games on Thursday coincided with talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, in the Kremlin.

Russia says ultimate goal of external powers in Belarus is regime change

A senior Russian official says the ultimate goal of external forces in fueling post-election unrest in Belarus is regime change, after Minsk hinted at “irrefutable” evidence of a coup plot in the country.

Lukashenko won a sixth term in office in a presidential election in August 2020. His main political rival, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, protested the result, claiming there had been voter fraud. Western governments quickly came out in her support, repeating the allegations of vote-rigging.

The US, the EU, Britain, and Canada recently imposed a series of new sanctions on Belarusian entities and officials in a coordinated response to the grounding of an intra-EU flight in Minsk.

Lukashenko has shrugged off the Western pressure with backing from key ally Russia. Minsk has also warned that it might be forced to take reciprocal measures that could in turn adversely affect the citizens and businesses of Western countries.

Gazprom: Nord Stream 2 construction completed 

Energy giant Gazprom announced on Friday that it had fully completed the construction of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas subsea pipeline from Russia to Germany.

"The head of the management board, Alexei Miller, told the morning meeting at Gazprom that the construction of Nord Stream 2 was fully completed today in the morning at 0845 Moscow time," Gazprom said.

The pipeline will double Russia's gas exporting capacity to Europe via the Baltic Sea.

Gazprom, which has executed the project in collaboration with five European companies, estimates that the 1,230-kilometer pipeline will be able to supply up to 55 billion cubic meters of natural gas to European customers per year.

Nord Stream 2 has been repeatedly attacked by the United States and some allies as a project that could increase Europe’s dependence on Russia for its energy needs.

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