On Thursday, at several military ranges of Russia and Belarus at once this year's largest military exercise, West-2017, was launched. Even before they began, a form of hysteria broke out in the European press, and the number of servicemen taking part in maneuvers was arbitrarily increased tenfold. Evgeny Reshetnev will tell us what's really happening.
Get ready! According to the scenario of exercises, the Pskov range is enemy territory. The enemy crossed the border and took up a defense. It was decided to attack from the air. In the sky there are 500 parachutes.
Equipment and tanks are dropped. To prevent the enemy from advancing deeper into the country's territory troops block roads, crossings and bridges. Leningrad region. Rocket artillery in the action. You can hardly see in the smoke, but you can clearly hear how howitzer batteries begin to fire at the edge of the forest.
The exercises started 3 days ago with a large-scale redeployment. Echelons with Russian tanks moved to Belarusian ranges. Su-35 fighters are rising into the sky. Their crews escort long-range aviation.
The artillery is entrenched in the forest. Trenches are convenient and safe for distributing ammunition. It can be seen what kind of work the fighters did: the trenches were dug in just one night, by one artillery battery, 28 people. Weaponry is carefully disguised, here with spruce branches, moss is lined up on top, so the guns aren't visible from the air. Everything is from nature, that is, it's real, the soldiers brought moss here. The western regions of Russia and most of Belarus, Mogilev, Minsk, Vitebsk and Brest regions.
Nine military ranges, plus the Baltic Sea area near Kaliningrad that's the theater of exercises that began under the direct order of the supreme commanders-in-chief of both countries. The goal is to test the countries' readiness to repel possible aggression.
The corps of the first Guardian Tank Army were deployed, are positioned in said regions of Belarus, set up army, brigade, and division command posts, and are carrying out joint exercises. Belarusians are going to test their latest development in these exercises, here it is, a rocket fire system Polonaise, with a range of fire up to 200 kilometers.
The rocket system is capable of striking 8 targets simultaneously using 8 rockets. Russia will test the battle machine for tank support, Terminator, the T-90S1 tank, and probably, the legendary "Armata".
Meanwhile, Russian sappers in Belarusian forests are looking for anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. Soldiers are wearing new and lighter armor. Allies must feel each other's shoulder, that's what these exercises are for. Near Mogilev, Belarusian and Russian tankers are practicing a maneuver, which the military calls the "Syrian Shaft".
A mound is built by a grader. From behind it the tanks shoot one after another, thus avoiding return fire. The naval base of the Baltic Fleet. Here, a group of 20 ships is preparing to enter the open sea. We're on board of corvette Soobrazitelny, this is a unique development of Russian designers.
For the first time stealth technology was used in shipbuilding. The entire superstructure is made of a special composite material, which suppresses radio signals. Because of this, the ship is almost invisible to enemy radar. S
mall missile, guard-ships, and personnel ships, minesweepers, missile boats and auxiliary vessels, almost the entire Baltic fleet is underway. Seamen will conduct antisubmarine and mine action exercises, and will deflect an attack from the air. Target marker is lost. Target is destroyed. The air target is shown on this screen, then the operator gives all the necessary data in order to hit it with a rocket or an artillery strike.
Almost 13,000 soldiers, almost 700 units of military equipment, 70 aircraft and helicopters from both sides. Under the agreement between Minsk and Moscow, joint strategic exercises are held every 2 years. Maneuvers "Shield of the Union," are held in Russia. The second, "The West," mainly in Belarus.
The active phase of the exercises will begin in the next three days. International observers were invited to Belarus for this. They will be able to visit all the training grounds, so that the joint Russian-Belarusian exercises, as was said, took place with maximum transparency. Evgeny Reshetnev, Alexander Alexandroniс, Margarita Kurilova, Oleg Piletskiy, Sergey Ishenko, Alexander Fedorov, Nikita Bunakov, Pavel Timofeev. Vesti, News of the Week.
