DISINFO: Belarus mobilised its air force fearing an imminent NATO invasion
SUMMARY
Belarus put its combat planes Su-30SM on alert due to fears of a NATO invasion. The minister of Defence of the country reported that fighters took off from one of the airbases of the country, and this is due to a foreign invasion by NATO. Independent analysts pointed out that there is no other reason for patrolling the border. Finally, the NATO planes didn’t show up, fearing that this provocation may lead Russia to adopt similar measures, and today Eastern Europe is not ready for any conflict with Russia, even an insignificant one.
RESPONSE
Contrary to the claim, according to Belarusian media and authorities, the reported mobilisation of combat planes was part of a scheduled combat training exercise, not because the Belarusian government feared any external military aggression. There is no reason for NATO, a collective defence organisation, to launch an invasion of Belarus. This is part of a Russian disinformation campaign on post-electoral events in Belarus, merged with recurrent pro-Kremlin narratives portraying NATO as an ever-aggressive organisation and Russia as a mighty military power. See other examples of pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives in Belarus, such as claims that the EU reaction to Lukashenko’s victory is an example of Western double standards; that the same lack of democracy and repression is present in EU countries that criticise them in Minsk; that the arrest of Russian mercenaries in Belarus was a Ukrainian provocation, and the Ukrainian secret services may have planned terrorist attacks on Belarusian territory; that the West wants to prepare another Maidan in the country; or that Belarusians, Ukrainians and Russians are one single nation.