Expert: active militarisation of Europe has no defensive goals at all
The US is actively promoting its interests in Europe, leading to the militarisation of the region and increased military activity near our borders. An infrastructure is being developed in Europe for the reception and deployment of groups, including those from the NATO united armed forces. During the Minsk-Moscow Union State live streaming, Ruslan Kosygin, the Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee on National Security of the House of Representatives of Belarus, explained in detail all the nuances of the current situation in our region.
“All this is happening under the far-fetched pretext of a ‘threat from the East’,” the deputy noted. “Of course, this is nonsense. The President of Belarus has repeatedly said that we are not going to attack anyone. If we trace the dynamics of those promises that the West gave us, that they would not move NATO to the East, would not carry out militarisation, and compare it with what we actually have nowadays, then everything becomes clear. As the Head of State says: facts on the table.”
In 2004, there were 100 people and 4 aircraft in Europe (out of the foreign presence, primarily Americans) In 2017, there were already up to 12,000 people and 16 aircraft. In January 2022, the group of foreign troops in Europe was close to 27,000, and over 36 thousand aircraft were registered in October 2023.
“Today, more than 80,000 military personnel are deployed in Europe from the US armed forces alone,” Ruslan Kosygin stressed. “Ten multinational tactical combat groups with a total strength of almost 11,000 people have been deployed near our borders. The land group consists of over 33,000 people while the air group includes over 2,000 people. The naval group has up to 15 ships on combat duty on an almost constant basis, with carriers of air- and sea-based cruise missiles. Of course, this is a group that implements the tasks of creating a base on the basis of which groups can be deployed for subsequent aggression against both Belarus and Russia.”
The Belarusian deputy also recalled that the EU has adopted an action plan on military mobility, designed for 2023-2027, “This plan – worth about $1.6bn – envisages the modernisation of airfields, air bases, ports, railway lines, and highways. All this is being done as part of an increase in the so-called military Schengen. There is no question of a defensive character here. All these elements testify to the preparation of a group of troops.”
Moreover, as Mr. Kosygin notes, bases for storing weapons and military equipment are being created in Europe. In the case of the transfer of troops from the US, it will be possible to equip almost a division of the military with this equipment.
“We clearly understand and see that all the ongoing operational combat training activities on the part of NATO pose a certain challenge for Belarus and Russia,” the deputy stressed. “It has not yet turned into a threat, but at the same time, the subject of testing and the number of events are already off the scale. Since early 2024 alone, more than 200 military drills have been conducted in neighbouring countries, involving about 350,000 military personnel. Last year, 360 manoeuvres were held, featuring about 600,000 troops.”
NATO’s Steadfast Defender 2024 exercise has become the largest in recent decades.
“Thirty-two countries, over 90,000 military personnel, 70 warships and about 300 combat aircraft – this is not a defensive group. This is a group that is preparing for an attack,” Mr. Kosygin summed up.
