In the shadow of the Ukraine war, the Kremlin announces a repeat of the "Vostok" maneuver - and brings Belarus, China and India on board. 50,000 soldiers, 140 aircraft and 60 warships alone are supposed to send a clear message to the West: Russia still has plenty of resources.
More than 50,000 soldiers will take part in a planned major Russian military exercise this week. In the "Vostok 2022" ("East 2022") exercise, 5,000 weapons and military equipment are also to be used, as well as 140 aircraft and 60 warships and other boats, as the Ministry of Defense announced in Moscow in the morning.
The maneuver therefore begins this Thursday and ends on Wednesday next week. It is to take place at military training areas in Eastern Siberia and the Far East, as well as in the Sea of Japan. According to the information, soldiers from abroad have already arrived at a training ground in eastern Russia - including from Belarus and other ex-Soviet republics, China and India.
The exercise in the middle of the Ukraine war is about ensuring the military security of Russia and its allies, it said. "Vostok" is one of the largest military exercises in Russia. Almost 300,000 Russian soldiers were involved in the most complex edition to date, in 2018, as well as Mongolian and Chinese units.
