On January 16, Russia and Belarus began joint tactical flight exercises, in which the aviation units of the armed forces of Belarus and Russia, as well as the military formation of the aerospace forces of the Russian Federation, take part. This is stated in the message of the Ministry of Defense of Belarus.
Officially, the "main goal" of the exercises is called "increasing interoperability in the joint performance of combat training tasks." The Armed Forces will practice conducting aerial reconnaissance, patrolling along the border, air support for groupings of troops, as well as landing tactical airborne troops, delivering cargo and evacuating the wounded, the Defense Ministry stressed.
For the exercises, which will last until February 1, all airfields and training grounds of the Belarusian Air Force and Air Defense will be involved.
At the end of 2022, Russia began to actively transfer tanks, equipment and personnel from Belarusian training grounds closer to the border with Ukraine, Belorussky Gayun reported . Lukashenka also instructed to conduct an unscheduled check of the combat readiness of the Armed Forces of the Republic. Belarus, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, accused Kiev of preparing an attack. And Lukashenka did create one of the most popular memes during the war, claiming that an “attack was being prepared” against Belarus from somewhere, and promising to show cards. At the same time, it is Russia that uses the territory of Belarus to launch missiles at Ukraine.
On December 19, Vladimir Putin flew to Belarus for the first time since 2019. Following the talks, Putin and Lukashenko announced that agreements had been reached on the creation of a “single defense space”. Belarusian political analyst Artyom Shraibman said in an interview with The Insider that the meeting was held to create agreements that would help Lukashenka stabilize his position within the country.