Russia and Belarus launched a joint military exercise on the NATO border on Friday, ratcheting up tensions with the West two days after Poland shot down Russian drones in a move seen as a provocation and test of NATO’s response.

The Zapad 2025 joint military exercise between Belarus and Russia has officially commenced, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense. pic.twitter.com/Eaoh2Mi0K2

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) September 12, 2025

The joint military exercise Zapad-2025, which is being carried out on military fields in both countries, includes areas near the border with Poland, an area where tensions with the West are high. The exercise was planned before the drone incident, which is the first known case in which a NATO member was forced to “strike” Russian targets during the war in the last 3.5 years.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that in the first phase of the exercise, troops will simulate repelling an attack on Russia and Belarus. In the second phase, the exercise will focus on restoring the territorial integrity of the “Union State,” which the two countries make up, and eliminating the enemy, with the participation of coalition forces from friendly countries, the Defense Ministry said.

Belarus shares borders with three NATO members, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, and also borders Ukraine.

🇷🇺🇧🇾 Se inicia o exercício militar conjunto Zapad 2025!

O objetivo do exercício estratégico é o treinamento conjunto das forças armadas da Rússia e Belarus, simulando a defesa dos seus territórios contra uma agressão da OTAN aos dois estados.pic.twitter.com/dXitzD5hnC

— Análise Geopolítica (@AnaliseGeopol) September 12, 2025

The Kremlin, through Dmitry Peskov, described Europe’s concerns about the exercises as an emotional reaction and said it would not comment on the drone incident, which the West saw as a provocation and a test of NATO’s reactions.

The US government acknowledged the Russian provocation, with Donald Trump saying the Russian drone incursion could have been a mistake. “I’m not satisfied with anything to do with this situation, but I hope it will end soon,” he said Thursday.

Warsaw is on high alert

Even before Tuesday’s incident, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had called the upcoming exercises “very aggressive” and announced that Poland would close its border with Belarus at midnight Thursday. Poland’s deputy defense minister, Cesari Tomczyk, said Poland has been preparing for months and conducting its own exercises, codenamed “Iron Defender,” with 30,000 troops participating in the drills and about 5,000 on the border with Belarus.

Lithuania has also said it is protecting its borders because of the military exercise. General Pavel Muraveiko, head of the Belarusian General Staff, said the exercises will be held at a “significant distance” from the borders with NATO states and Ukraine, adding that the drills will include drones, electronic warfare, and the use of artificial intelligence to support decision-making.

Peskov on the "emotional overreaction" around the Zapad-2025 (West-2025) military exercises:

"I would like to recall the words of our president: Russia has never threatened anyone, nor does it threaten the countries of Europe.

It was not Russia that moved its military… https://t.co/5Muji4EC20 pic.twitter.com/CJWkhjJkeh

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) September 12, 2025

The latest “Zapad”

The last joint “Zapad” exercise took place in September 2021, five months before the full Russian invasion of Ukraine, which was launched partly from Belarusian territory. Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of the Russian president, has backed Putin throughout the war, but has not sent troops of his own. Since the beginning of the conflict, Belarus has allowed Russia to regularly station nuclear missiles on its territory and is preparing to host Moscow’s new Oreshnik supersonic missile.

Lukashenko, however, is trying to restore relations with the US after years of sanctions. On Thursday, he released 52 prisoners at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump and said he stands by him in his efforts to resolve a series of international conflicts.