Around 12,800 Servicemen To Take Part In West-2021 Drills In Belarus - General Staff Chief

The upcoming strategic drills West-2021 in Belarus will unite around 12,800 participants, including around 2,500 Russian military and up to 50 Kazakh servicemen, Viktor Gulevich, the chief of the Belarusian general staff, said on Thursday

MINSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 05th August, 2021) The upcoming strategic drills West-2021 in Belarus will unite around 12,800 participants, including around 2,500 Russian military and up to 50 Kazakh servicemen, Viktor Gulevich, the chief of the Belarusian general staff, said on Thursday.

"The number of servicemen taking part in the exercise on the territory of the Republic of Belarus will reach around 12,800, including around 2,500 Russian servicemen and up to 50 Kazakh servicemen from the Collective Security Treaty Organization's collective rapid reaction forces," Gulevich said at a briefing.

"Almost 400 Belarusian servicemen and over 30 units of military equipment of the Belarusian armed forces will take part in the drills on the territory of the Russian Federation," Gulevich added.

The strategic exercise will be held in Belarus and Russia from September 10-16 to check readiness of the two countries' armed forces to protect the Union State.