Defence Ministers of the Russian Federation, General of the Army Sergei Shoigu and the Republic of Belarus Viktor Khrenin discussed in Moscow the plan of joint military cooperation activities for 2021, said the Directorate of Media service and Information at the Russian Ministry of Defence.
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"We have many issues, concerning the continuation of our cooperation, that need to be discussed," the head of the Russian military department said.
Sergey Shoigu said that the largest joint exercise will be Zapad-2021. Other events are planned not only for bilateral cooperation but also within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).
The Russian Defence Minister also invited his Belarusian colleagues to an international security conference and the International Army Games to be held this year. The activity on the joint air defence system of Russia and Belarus was also discussed during this meeting.
“We are waiting for you at all our events, especially the International Army Games,” said the Russian Defence Minister.
Sergey Shoigu said that several countries have expressed their desire to host some competitions of the Army Games on their territory. The number of states that want to participate in the Games is increasing.
In his turn, Viktor Khrenin said that Belarus will participate in the Games this year with 27 teams who are preparing to compete for victory in 26 competitions.
"And we will also host three competitions on the territory of Belarus," the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Belarus added.
The heads of the military departments of the two states agreed to establish three training and combat centres for joint training of military personnel.
The Russian-Belarusian joint combat training centres that are being created will be deployed in the Nizhny Novgorod and Kaliningrad regions of the Russian Federation, as well as the Grodno Region of the Republic of Belarus.
