West Should Keep a Wary Eye on Russia’s Zapad War Games

In Russia and neighbouring Belarus, preparations were underway in the summer of 2017 for Zapad - a major military exercise to be held for six days from 14 September 2017. The two countries' Western neighbours were worried. Zapad was Russian for 'West', and of all the different major exercises in the Russian military calendar, it caused the most excitement and concern because it was the one that most closely resembled practice for invading those neighbours.

Author wrote that Russia was mixing threatening language designed to intimidate the West with another, contradictory message: that those who fear a Russian military threat are 'hysterical' and hankering for the Cold War.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Rising tension in the relations between Belarus and Russia http://www.europeansources.info/record/rising-tension-in-the-relations-between-belarus-and-russia/

Wikipedia: Zapad 2017 exercise https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zapad_2017_exercise

Deutsche Welle, 17.08.17: Russia readies troops for Zapad war games with Belarus http://www.dw.com/en/russia-readies-troops-for-zapad-war-games-with-belarus/a-40140234

The Economist, 10.08.17: Putin the boots in Belarus. Russia’s biggest war game in Europe since the cold war alarms NATO https://www.economist.com/news/europe/21726075-some-fear-zapad-2017-could-be-cover-skullduggery-russias-biggest-war-game-europe

Carnegie Europe: Strategic Europe, 14.09.17: Moscow’s Zapad-17 Raises the Stakes for NATO http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/73103?lang=en

Visegrad Insight, 06.09.17: Zapad 2017 – survey http://visegradinsight.eu/zapad-2017-survey/

Sputnik International: Tag: Zapad 2017 https://sputniknews.com/tags/event_Zapad-2017/

Deutsche Welle, 15.09.17: NATO's eyes in the sky zoom in on Russian Zapad war games http://p.dw.com/p/2k4FB

Euro|Topics: Debates, September 2017: Zapad 17: Russian sabre-rattling on NATO's flank / Do Baltic military exercises pose a threat? / What strategy is Moscow pursuing with Zapad? http://www.eurotopics.net/en/185930/what-strategy-is-moscow-pursuing-with-zapad

BBC News, 11.09.17: Russian Zapad military exercise in Belarus raises tension http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-41185915

ECFR: Policy Memo, September 2017: So far from god, so close to Russia: Belarus and the Zapad military exercise http://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/so_close_to_russia_belarus_and_the_zapad_military_exercise_7221

Deutsche Welle, 07.09.17: Russian 'Zapad-2017' drill – what does Moscow want? http://p.dw.com/p/2jdPj

The Guardian, 06.09.17: Nato accuses Russia of blocking observation of massive war game https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/06/nato-russia-belarus-zapad

Chatham House: Expert Comment, 25.09.17: Five Things to Know About the Zapad-2017 Military Exercise https://www.chathamhouse.org/expert/comment/five-things-know-about-zapad-2017-military-exercise

Deutsche Welle, 27.09.17: Zapad-2017: 'Normal military business' http://p.dw.com/p/2koX4

Deutsche Welle: Tag: Zapad 2017 http://www.dw.com/search/en?languageCode=en&origin=gN&item=Zapad-2017&searchNavigationId=9097

Carnegie Europe: Strategic Europe, 21.09.17: Learning Lessons From Zapad 2017 http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/73184?lang=en

The Guardian, 18.09.17: Vladimir Putin watches display of Russian firepower near EU border https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/18/russia-zapad-military-drill-enters-final-phase

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