Russia and Belarus Launch Zapad War Games as NATO Raises Alarm

Russia and Belarus have launched large-scale “Zapad” joint military exercises involving around 7,000 troops, including 6,000 Belarusian soldiers, amid rising tensions with NATO. The drills featured a Kalibr missile test strike from the nuclear submarine Arkhangelsk in the Barents Sea, demonstrating Moscow’s military capabilities. Both Moscow and Minsk insist the exercises are defensive, simulating a response to an invasion, but NATO allies — including Poland and Romania — see them as a growing threat following recent alleged airspace violations by Russian drones. Poland has warned that “open conflict” is closer than at any time since World War II, and Britain has deployed fighter jets to help secure Polish airspace. Belarus’s Defence Minister Viktor Khrenin dismissed NATO’s concerns as “nonsense,” further fueling tensions in an already volatile region.