Belarusian and Russian forces conducted large-scale military manoeuvres at the Borisovsky training ground about 45 miles (72 km) from Minsk on Friday, staging aerial strikes, helicopter gunship runs and artillery barrages in exercises officials say are defensive in nature.
Journalists and military attachés from 23 countries, including the United States, Turkey and Hungary, observed explosions, guided-bomb drops by Sukhoi-34 aircraft, mortar and artillery fire, and surveillance drones sweeping the area. Belarusian officials described the drills as unusually transparent and insisted they posed no threat to neighbours.
Major General Valery Revenko, assistant to the Belarusian defence minister, told reporters at the site that Minsk and Moscow were "for constructive and pragmatic dialogue" and that the exercises were not intended to menace other states. Poland’s government, however, voiced sharp scepticism. Prime Minister Donald Tusk described the Zapad‑2025 manoeuvres as "very aggressive," and Poland temporarily closed its border with Belarus ahead of the exercises, prompting an angry response from Minsk.
Zapad‑2025 is the latest iteration of a quadrennial exercise series. Belarus and Russia say the size of the forces participating this year is smaller than in 2022, when about 200,000 troops took part. Observers and reporters recalled that in February 2022, after a Belarus-Russia exercise called Union Resolve, Russian forces used Belarusian soil to launch an invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.
The drills coincide with heightened tensions across eastern Europe, where recent incidents have raised alarm among NATO members. Last week, Poland accused Russia of deliberately violating its airspace with a series of drone incursions that prompted NATO to scramble fighter jets. Russian officials said they had not planned to engage targets on Polish soil. Romania also reported that a Russian drone breached its airspace.
Those incursions have fuelled concern in Europe that Russia may be probing NATO defences and political unity, an interpretation echoed by several European capitals. Belarus invited international media and diplomatic observers to the Borisovsky ground in what Minsk characterised as a transparency measure. Journalists at the scene noted the scale and intensity of the live-fire displays, and some analysts said the visuals could be intended as a signal to European governments about the capabilities on their doorstep.
Moscow and Minsk maintain that Zapad‑2025 is defensive and aimed at strengthening bilateral security. In recent months both governments have also made diplomatic overtures beyond Europe, seeking improved ties with the United States according to participants in discussions, even as relations with many European states remain strained.
The exercises were conducted under heavy security and observed from a raised platform by international attachés and reporters. Belarusian and Russian forces used a combination of fixed-wing aircraft, rotary-wing gunships, artillery and unmanned aerial systems to simulate combined-arms operations. Officials said after-action reviews would follow to assess performance and interoperability.
European capitals are watching the manoeuvres for any operational or political signals. While Minsk emphasises openness, memories of the 2022 troop movements that preceded a regional escalation have left neighbouring states wary. NATO member states have reiterated commitments to monitor airspace and borders closely and to coordinate responses to any violations.
As the drills wind down, diplomats and defence officials in the region said they would continue to press for clarity on command structures and the scope of future exercises while maintaining readiness in the face of any further incursions or escalatory moves.