India and Iran took part for the first time in joint military exercises led by Russia and Belarus, according to local Russian media.
Vladimir Putin confirmed that “100,000 military personnel are participating ” in the multinational Zapad exercise, which represents one of the largest recent deployments in the region, according to the AFP agency.
The international contingent now includes forces from Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Congo, and Mali, demonstrating Moscow and Minsk's intention to expand alliances outside Europe and strengthen cooperation with countries in Africa and Asia. Sources cited by the Times of Malta said the inclusion of these nations is a response to Russia's commitment to fostering joint initiatives without involving the new partners in direct confrontations with NATO.
The Russian Defense Ministry explained to Reuters that the exercise aims to rehearse a response to a “potential aggression against the Union State,” referring to the military alliance between Russia and Belarus.
India has deployed 65 personnel from the Kumaon Regiment to Mulino, a base far from NATO borders. The Indian Defense Ministry, quoted by The Times, said its participation aims to strengthen cooperation and trust with Moscow, in line with a military relationship that dates back to the Cold War.
The presence of Iranian troops was confirmed by agencies such as Tass, inscribing Tehran's participation in a dynamic of growing military and technological collaboration with Moscow, reinforced by exchanges linked to the conflict in Ukraine.
The exercises included simulated launches of Zircon hypersonic missiles and Oreshnik ballistic missiles, flights of Tu-160 nuclear bombers over the Barents Sea, maneuvers in the Baltic Sea, and coastal defense tests using armored vehicles and drones. Videos from the Russian Defense Ministry showed the Northern Fleet's Marine Corps defending the Murmansk Peninsula from a simulated landing.
In the Belarusian zone, nearly 7,000 troops and aircraft operated in areas near the borders with Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. The total number of troops, including international contingents, was confirmed by Putin and reiterated by state news agencies such as TASS.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said one of the scenarios simulated an operation on the “Suwałki Corridor,” a strategic crossing between Belarus and the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, and announced the deployment of 40,000 Polish troops to the border during the exercises.
Regarding weapons, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko stated that the exercises included Russian tactical nuclear weapons."We don't plan to threaten anyone with this, but we must know how to operate these weapons systems," he explained.
Observers from the United States, Turkey, and Hungary partially attended the training under international standards. NATO increased surveillance in the region and considered the operation a sign of military and political pressure from Moscow and its allies.
At the close of the maneuvers, Putin stressed the importance of deepening military cooperation with countries not aligned with the West and the need to maintain the strategic readiness of the bloc led by Moscow and Minsk.
