Belarus

MINSK, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Belarus and Russia on Monday launched a joint tactical air force exercise that will last until Feb. 1, the Belarusian Defense Ministry said.

The main goal of the exercise is to "increase operational compatibility during joint combat training missions," the ministry said in a statement.

The participants will practice aerial reconnaissance, joint patrolling along the state borders, air support for ground troops, tactical airborne landings, delivery of goods and evacuation of the wounded.

Dec 29 (Reuters) - Belarus protested to Ukraine's ambassador on Thursday after saying it had downed a Ukrainian S-300 air defence missile in a field, during one of Russia's heaviest aerial onslaughts against Ukraine since the start of the war.

The military commissar of the Brest region, Oleg Konovalov, played the incident down in a video posted on social media by the state-run BelTA news agency, saying locals had "absolutely nothing to worry about. Unfortunately, these things happen".

MINSK, December 26. /TASS/: Next year will be the happiest and most successful year, where everything will work out, according to a forecast from Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

MINSK, December 24. /TASS/: Minsk is hopeful that at the end of the outgoing year the amount of Belarusian exports to Russia will be about $22-23 billion, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said on Saturday.

MINSK, December 14. /TASS/: Minsk aims to work with traditional and new strategic partners, especially in Eurasia, the new head of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, Sergey Aleinik, said on Wednesday.

"We have always put and will always put the realization of our economic interests first, we will continue working with our strategic traditional and new partners and cooperation at integration sites with the focus on Eurasia," he said during an introduction to employees of the diplomatic department.

MINSK, December 13. /TASS/: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has appointed Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Aleinik to the post of foreign minister.

"Sergey Aleinik, who most recently worked as a first deputy foreign minister, has been appointed foreign minister," the BelTA news service said on Tuesday.

Also, Andrey Lukyanovich has been appointed commander of the Belarusian Air Force and Air Defense Forces. He most recently was a deputy commander of the Air Force and Air Defense Forces, BelTA said.

MINSK, December 13. /TASS/: Brest paratroopers and Grodno engineer brigade personnel are participating in the snap combat readiness inspection that kicked off in Belarus on Tuesday.

MINSK, December 3. /TASS/: Allied relations between Moscow and Minsk have special importance amid unprecedented pressure from the West, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said at a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Viktor Khrenin on Saturday.

"Belarus has been and remains our reliable partner. It is particularly important today, amid unprecedented pressure from the collective West and an undeclared war against our countries," Shoigu pointed out.

MINSK, December 1. /TASS/: Belarus is aware of active militarization in the neighboring countries, but it does not think that hostilities against it can begin in the near future, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said on Thursday following a meeting of key military, law enforcement and security officials at President Alexander Lukashenko’s office.

MINSK, November 28. /TASS/: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko plans to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the near future, as he himself said on Monday.