English

Russian fighter jets to be transferred to Belarusian airfields

The Russian Federation’s fighter jets will be transferred to airfields in Belarus under an agreement with Russian authorities, Aleh Dvihalyow, commander-in-chief of Belarus’ Air and Air Defense Force, told reporters in Minsk.

“Today I was ordered to build up the strength of the active-duty units of the Common Regional Air Defense System of Belarus and Russia,” General Major Dvihalyow said, noting that the measures to be taken for this purpose would include the relocation of Russian fighter jets to airfields in Belarus.

Mr. Dvihalyow, who was appointed commander of the Common Regional Air Defense System by a joint decision of the presidents of Belarus and Russia in August 2013, did no specify how many Russian military aircraft would be sent to Belarus, but Alyaksandr Lukashenka said earlier in the day that Belarus would ask Russia to deploy 12 to 15 warplanes in its territory in response to increased NATO activity near Belarus. //BelaPAN