Two days before Russia is scheduled to hold joint military exercises with several countries, including India, the United States on Tuesday said it was concerned about any nation that plans to participate in such operations at a time when Moscow is engaged in a war with Ukraine, PTI reported.
The joint exercises, called Vostok, will be held from September 1 to September 7 in the far east regions of Russia. Apart from India, troops of China, Laos, Mongolia, Nicaragua, Syria and several former Soviet Union nations will participate in the drill.
Moscow has not disclosed the number of troops engaged in what the Kremlin calls as a “special military operation” in Kyiv.
On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that the US has voiced its concerns about countries engaging with Russia as it wages “an unprovoked, brutal war” against Ukraine.
“But, of course, every participating country will make its own decisions,” Jean-Pierre added. “And I’ll leave it at that.”
There were no immediate comments from the Army or the Ministry of Defence in New Delhi about the participation of Indian soldiers in the military exercises amid heightened tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
On August 17, the Chinese defence ministry had said that its participation in the exercises was “unrelated to the current international and regional situation”.
“The aim is to deepen practical and friendly cooperation with the armies of participating countries, enhance the level of strategic collaboration among the participating parties, and strengthen the ability to respond to various security threats,” Beijing had said in a statement.
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