MINSK - U.S. plans to deploy a missile defense shield in Europe and a surge in NATO's activity near the borders of the Russia-Belarus Union are prompting Moscow to step up its cooperation with Minsk, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said.
"We are troubled both by an increase in NATO’s activity near the borders of the [Russia-Belarus] Union and plans of the U.S. and other members of the alliance to deploy elements of a missile defense shield in Europe," he said after a session of the joint board of the Russian and Belarusian Defense Ministries in Minsk on Wednesday.
"The present-day situation is prompting us to step up cooperation with our allies, primarily Belarus," Serdyukov said.
The sides "plan to continue their constructive dialogue aimed at bolstering their common security," the Russian minister said.
Moscow and Minsk "see eye to eye on key avenues of cooperation in military issues," Serdyukov said.
"It was confirmed at a bilateral meeting [with Belarusian Defense Minister Yury Zhadobin]. We exchanged opinions on issues surrounding cooperation between the Defense Ministries," he said.
"An informative and sincere discussion" took place during the board’s session, he said.
"We addressed the prospects for developing regional groups of forces of Belarus and Russia," Serdyukov said.
