Contents tagged with Belarus

  • Poland to double size of its army making it the largest in Europe

    The Polish government has prepared an updated defense decree, which provides for a sharp increase in the number of the country's armed forces.

    According to Poland Daily Live, the document will replace the military doctrine adopted in 1967, when Poland was part of the Soviet bloc.

    According to the bill, the number of personnel in the Polish army  should double in the coming years  - from 150 to 300 thousand people, which will make it the largest in Europe. Cyber defense units will also be …

  • Poland and Lithuania deploy troops to Belarus’ border as large migrant group tries to break into EU

    A very large group of migrants gathered in Belarus near the border with Poland. They have been trying to break through barbed wire and enter the territory of the European Union, reported the Polish Defense Ministry.

    The Polish Defense Ministry published a video taken from the air, which shows that several hundred people near the border strip from on the Belarusian side. Large groups of migrants are also observed near Grodno, near the border crossings Bruzgi (Belarus) and Kuznica (Poland). …

  • Belarusian soldiers threaten to shoot at Polish border guards

    The Polish Defense Ministry reported about the worsening situation on the Belarusian border due to a large influx of illegal immigrants.

    According to the Polish Defense Ministry, Belarusian soldiers threatened Polish border guards with weapons while trying to move a large group of illegal immigrants across the border.

    The incident occurred on November 3. Polish border guards found a huge group of about 250 illegal migrants trying to cross the border. They were accompanied by Belarusian …

  • Russia prepares to absorb Belarus as Minsk's debt mounts

    Russian President Vladimir Putin and self-proclaimed president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko put their signatures under the integration decree of the Union State, approving 28 programs in the areas from gas price regulation and defense to central banks policy.

    The document, the preparation for which was going slowly for more than three years and accelerated dramatically after the elections in Belarus, was signed via a videoconference on Thursday.

    Russia will continue to "provide assistance …

  • Russia and Belarus to adopt joint military doctrine

    On November 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin 4 will take part in a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, which will be held in the format of a video conference, the press service of the Kremlin reported.

    During the meeting, it is planned to approve a "package of important integration documents". These are the "Main directions for the implementation of the provisions of the treaty on the creation of the Union State for 2021-2023", which include 28 sectoral programs, as …

  • Kremlin: Russia is ready to supply S-400 air defense systems to Belarus

    The Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSVTS) sees no obstacles to potential deliveries of the S-400 system to Belarus, said the director of the FSVTS, Dmitry Shugaev, in an interview with RBC news agency .

    "After all, we live in one Union State. Naturally, we are not indifferent to how [Belarus’] airspace will be protected," he added.

    When asked whether Russia can make a discount to Belarus on the S-400, he replied that "it is premature to talk in advance about some …

  • German Government: Belarus is creating migrant crisis in Europe with Russia’s approval

    German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said that Russia was to blame for the migrant crisis in the European Union which was created by Belarus. He noted that this is not only his opinion but of the entire German government, reports Bild.

    Noting that "organized and, at least, supported at the state level activities for the transportation of illegal migrants" are taking place through the territory of Belarus, Seehofer added: "We are all convinced that the key to solving the problem lies in …

  • Transneft’s subsidiary in Belarus on verge of bankruptcy

    After a year of calm relations between Russia and Belarus in the oil sector are again beginning to deteriorate.

    Russian oil giant Transneft is considering the possibility of terminating the operations of its Belarusian subsidiary due to a sharp increase in taxes and pressure from Belarusian law enforcement agencies.

    Zapad-Transnefteprodukt, which supplies gasoline from Russian and Belarusian refineries to Hungary and Latvia, may suspend activities, Transneft President Nikolai Tokarev told …

  • Germany investigating Lukashenko’s involvement in migrant crisis

    The German authorities are investigating the involvement of the self-proclaimed Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in the transportation of illegal migrants to Germany, Bild reports, citing its sources.

    According to Bild, the illegal transportation of migrants to the EU countries is organized "at the state level" to "coerce Europe to lift sanctions" against Minsk.

    Since August, almost 4,000 migrants have arrived in Germany from Belarus, including 1,100 in the first week of October …

  • Belarus loses access to European banking system due to sanctions

    The Belarusian banking system has felt the heavy footstep of European and American sanctions imposed in the summer in response to repression and the forced landing of the Ryanair flight in Minsk.

    European banks began to massively close dollar end euro correspondent accounts of Belarusian states-owned companies, making it impossible to conduct operations in two key world currencies.

    Last week, the correspondent accounts of Belarusbank, Belinvestbank and Belagroprombank were closed by Deutcsche …