First Russian soldiers arrive in Belarus for joint force: Minsk - Al Jazeera English

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Belarus’s ministry of defence says that the ngo is ‘exclusively’ to fortify the extortion of its borders.

Published On 15 Oct 2022

The archetypal convoy of Russian forces has arrived successful Belarus, the country’s defence ministry said connected Saturday, arsenic portion of a determination unit “exclusively to fortify the extortion and defence of the border” with Ukraine.

It comes days aft Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a adjacent state of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, said that Minsk and Moscow volition deploy a associated subject task force successful effect to what helium called an aggravation of hostility connected the country’s occidental borders.

Images connected societal media showed soldiers welcomed by women wearing accepted costumes and handing retired breadstuff and salt.

Lukashenko besides accused Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine of grooming Belarusian radicals “to transportation retired sabotage, violent attacks and to organise a subject mutiny successful the country”.

Lukashenko relies financially and politically connected Russia. Moscow helped the Belarusian president quell pro-democracy protests that erupted pursuing his triumph successful the disputed statesmanlike predetermination successful 2020.

The Belarus person allowed his state to beryllium utilized by Moscow’s troops to motorboat the penetration of Ukraine. But Belarusian equipped forces person until present not taken portion successful the offensive.

Now, the associated force’s deployment raises fears that Belarusian troops could articulation Russian forces successful their violative successful Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of “trying to straight gully Belarus into this war” astatine a G7 gathering connected Tuesday, calling for an planetary observers’ ngo to beryllium placed connected the Ukraine-Belarus border.

The latest improvement comes arsenic the Russian subject violative has witnessed a bid of setbacks aft losing crushed successful the northeast and southbound of Ukraine. In a further stroke to Moscow past week, a immense detonation damaged the Kerch bridge linking annexed Crimea to mainland Russia. The damaged span – a cardinal proviso way for Russian soldiers – volition not beryllium repaired until July, a papers published connected the Russian government’s website said. Kyiv has not claimed work for the attack.

Russia has carried retired a barrage of rocket and drone attacks crossed Ukraine aft blaming Kyiv for the Kerch span blast. A hospital, a kindergarten and different buildings successful the municipality of Nikopol, crossed the stream from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia atomic powerfulness plant, were targeted.

On Friday, Putin said helium has no plans “for now” to motorboat monolithic aerial raids specified arsenic those carried retired connected Monday. He added the call-up of reservists would beryllium finished successful 2 weeks, promising an extremity to the divisive mobilisation that has seen hundreds of thousands of men summoned to combat successful Ukraine and immense numbers fleeing the country.

Speaking astatine a information acme successful the Kazakh capital, Astana, Putin said helium did not regret sending troops into Ukraine astir 8 months ago.

“What is happening contiguous is unpleasant, to enactment it mildly,” helium said. “But we would person had each this a small later, lone nether worse conditions for us, that’s all. So my actions are close and timely.”

In effect to Monday’s attacks, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said Washington would nonstop munitions and subject vehicles to Ukraine arsenic portion of a caller $725m assistance package.

As Ukrainian “defenders propulsion backmost Russia’s forces”, the US stands agreed with Ukraine, Blinken said connected Friday successful a tweet.

Washington’s newest subject bundle includes much ammunition for HIMARS (High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems) and brings the full US subject assistance to Ukraine to $18.3bn from Joe Biden’s administration, the Department of Defence said successful a abstracted statement.