Minsk, Moscow to continue joint drills amid escalation in Eastern Ukraine

Moscow [Russia], February 20 (ANI/Sputnik): Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said Sunday that Moscow and Minsk had decided to continue the joint military exercise to test the Union State's response force.
Khrenin spoke while wrapping-up the preliminary results of the Russia-Belarus military drills "Union Courage 2022" scheduled to conclude on Sunday.
"Due to the increasing military activity near the external borders of the Union State and the aggravation of the situation in Donbas, the presidents of the Republic of Belarus and the Russian Federation decided to continue testing the Union State's response forces," the minister was quoted as saying on Telegram.
The exercise will aim to test the Union State's defense stages for ensuring "an adequate response and deescalation of military prepping by adversaries" near the Russian and Belarusian borders.
Khrenin added that neighboring countries are rapidly "pumping up" with modern weapons, with the NATO's level of readiness being raised from seven to five days in the event of an escalation in Ukraine.
"There is a very strong smell of gunpowder in Europe. It is being deliberately driven toward a war," the minister said.
Staring Friday, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics (DPR and LPR) have been reporting that the Ukrainian security forces are shelling populated areas in Donbas, using artillery mounts and mortars, in direct violation of the Minsk agreements. Earlier in the day, the LPR reported that two civilians died after an alleged attack of the Ukrainian military on Pionerskoye settlement. (ANI/Sputnik)