Overview

• Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service said Russian troops have begun departing Belarus after the Sept. 12–16 drills, and reported no activity toward the Ukrainian border during the exercise.
• Russia’s Defense Ministry said participating units and coalition forces are returning to their permanent bases after operations at 41 training sites in Russia and Belarus.
• Moscow presented the drills as involving roughly 100,000 personnel with extensive air and naval activity, and Vladimir Putin observed the final phase in uniform.
• India sent a 65-member contingent and officials in New Delhi framed the move as routine cooperation and strategic autonomy, despite criticism from some Western commentators.
• Foreign involvement included task forces from Iran, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Mali, and Russia emphasized widespread drone and robotic systems use plus nuclear-planning scenarios with Oreshnik hypersonic systems.