The regional grouping of the troops of the Union State will be strengthened. This was stated by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on November 4 at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State during a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"As recent events have shown, the regional grouping of the Union troops is a reliable security shield not only for our countries, but also for the entire post-Soviet space," BelTA quotes the Belarusian leader.
According to Lukashenko, he and the Russian leader do not hide their intentions to strengthen this group in the future.
On October 2, the President of Belarus said that in the event of external aggression, the republic would turn into a "single military base of Belarus and Russia." According to him, Minsk has long been an outpost of the Union State. In the event of a conflict, "the entire western part of the Russian Armed Forces will support" the republic.
In June, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin announced that in the near future it is planned to complete the creation of joint training centers with Russia for forces and troops.
The Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State between Russia and Belarus entered into force on January 26, 2000. In December 2019, by the 20th anniversary of the document, it was proposed to adopt a program to deepen integration. A working group was created to develop proposals, the parties in total developed projects of about 30 industry roadmaps.