Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Lithuania Reacts to Massive Russian Exercise - has it already begun?

Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskite has been quoted by The Wall Street Journal as reacting to the Russian military exercise Zapad 17,officially slated to begin on 14 September:
We see a very,very large scale offensive exercise that demonstrates hatred against the West.It is clear that this will be used to upgrade the military in the region,to upgrade the modernisation of the Army.
In reality,the Zapad exercises are already ongoing.It's not just military exercises,but information operations,propaganda and other follow-ups.*
This view was seconded by Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius:
Unconventional warfare is already happening as we speak.*
President Grybauskite believes that Russia is trying to undermine the Baltic governments with disinformation campaigns.Indeed,Moscow has specialised troops dedicated to information warfare.*
Western analysts note the large number of flatbed rail cars that have been requisitioned by Russian forces.It's more than is needed for a mere 12,700 troops,the official number of Zapad 17 participants.Up to 100,000 personnel could be involved in Zapad and interlinked exercises,which in fact began in August,according to NATO sources.Russia has already admitted that drills took place from 11-12 September 2017.On Monday,its Baltic Fleet practiced with S-300 and S-400 air defence systems and Su-24 bombers;while on Tuesday,Russia held snap readiness drills along its Western border.It additionally held exercises with Mongolia in August and in annexed Crimea in March 2017.
As an exclamation mark,Russia also successfully test-launched its Yar ICBM to a target in the Far East on 12 September. *
A Russian Soldier revealed that his division alone was sending 10,000 troops to Zapad 17.Every four years,the major exercise is held in the Western Strategic Direction,which extends from the Arctic Ocean to the Black Sea.This event shows where Russia perceives the front line is;where they want to be strategically postured against NATO.*
Zapad 17 is also occurring as intensive attacks by Russian-backed militants against the Donbas Region in Eastern Ukraine have multiplied in recent weeks in total disregard of the Minsk agreement.

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