'We will show you whatever you want' — US observers attend Russia, Belarus Zapad-2025 drills
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U.S. military representatives observed the ongoing Russia-Belarus Zapad-2025 military exercise on Sept. 15, Belarus's Defense Ministry announced.
"We will show whatever is of interest for you. Whatever you want. You can go there and see, talk to people," Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said.
The drills, which began on Sept. 12 and run until Sept. 16 in Belarus and western Russia, have raised alarm among NATO's eastern members, particularly Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia.
The ministry said observers from three NATO members — the U.S., Turkey, and Hungary — were present at a training ground near Barysaw, about 74 kilometers (45 miles) northeast of Minsk.
"It is hard to imagine such openness that we demonstrate and ensure in this exercise," Khrenin added. "The main reason is that we have nothing to hide."
The presence of U.S. observers comes as Washington seeks to re-engage with Minsk.
Days earlier, Belarus released 52 prisoners — including opposition figures, journalists, and foreign citizens — after talks with a U.S. delegation led by presidential envoy John Cole.
Following his meeting with Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko, Cole announced that Washington would lift sanctions on Belavia, Belarus's state airline.
Zapad drills, held every four years, are officially described as defensive but have long fueled unease in Europe. The 2025 edition has been downsized and staged further from NATO borders.
Warsaw closed all border crossings with Belarus as the exercises began.
Western officials warn that Zapad exercises, despite Minsk's assurances, remain a tool of military pressure against NATO's eastern flank.
Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since 1994, allowed Russian forces to launch attacks on Ukraine from Belarusian territory at the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
