Chinese and Belarusian troops practice seizing airport in drill near Ukrainian and Polish borders
- The ‘anti-terrorist’ exercise was held just days after Nato denounced Beijing as a ‘decisive enabler’ of Russia’s war effort
Chinese and Belarusian troops have simulated the capture of an airport in an exercise near the border with Poland and Ukraine – days after Nato denounced Beijing as a “decisive enabler” of Russia’s war effort.
The joint air-ground exercise comes just days after the Washington Summit Declaration issued by Nato leaders after their meeting in the US capital, which said China’s deepening partnership with Russia was a matter of “profound concern” to the alliance.
Its criticism of China over the war in Ukraine also cited its “no-limits partnership” with Moscow and “large-scale support for Russia’s defence industrial base”.
Belarus has been a key supporter of Moscow’s war effort since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022 and it has agreed to store Russia tactical nuclear warheads on its territory.
Recently Belarus became the 10th full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a Eurasian security bloc touted by China and Russia as an alternative to Western-led military groups.
