Ahead of Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 exercises Ukraine will hold large-scale command staff drills
Viktor Muzhenko, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), has said that the AFU will hold a series of command and staff exercises in September involving the troops and operational reserves, the core of which will be "Unbreakable Resistance-2017" exercises.
"From September 12 to 15, strategic command staff exercises will be held with the military command and control agencies and the troops (forces) of ‘Unbreakable Resistance-2017’. Its goal is to increase the capacity of military command and control bodies to manage troops (forces) in the course of regrouping, [as well as] conducting defensive, stabilizing and combat operations," The Public Relations department of the AFU quotes Muzhenko as saying.
According to Muzhenko, logistics training will be held prior to the exercises to help improve systems for the planning and comprehensive provision of troops and forces, the involvement of forces and assets during the strategic deployment of the AFU, and the repelling of armed aggression in risky areas.
"We will complete a full cycle of operational planning for the use of groupings of troops (forces). In addition, training on personnel and methods for the territorial defense of the state will be held, [involving] the deployment of the headquarters of territorial defense," the Chief of the General Staff added.
The strategic Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2017 exercises will be held at the same time, from September 14 to September 20, at several training facilities in Russia and Belarus. When announcing the maneuvers, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu called them "the flagship event for the joint training of Russian and Belarusian armed forces in 2017".
During his visit to Kyiv, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko guaranteed that the territory of his country would not be used to invade Ukraine.
NSDC (National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine) Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov believes that the Zapad-2017 exercise will test Russia's readiness for a big war with NATO countries. President Petro Poroshenko considers these exercises a threat to Ukraine.