{"id":23749,"date":"2021-10-06T18:55:59","date_gmt":"2021-10-06T18:55:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2021\/10\/06\/polish-commander-points-to-zapad-drill-as-russian-effort-to-regain-the-stage-as-a-global-power\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T22:02:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T22:02:46","slug":"polish-commander-points-to-zapad-drill-as-russian-effort-to-regain-the-stage-as-a-global-power","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/training-sim\/2021\/10\/06\/polish-commander-points-to-zapad-drill-as-russian-effort-to-regain-the-stage-as-a-global-power\/","title":{"rendered":"Polish commander points to Zapad drill as Russian effort to \u2018regain the stage as a global power\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WARSAW, Poland \u2014 A Polish commander has said Russia\u2019s Zapad 2021<\/a> military drill with Belarus featured a wide range of hybrid warfare tools<\/a> that Moscow is using to advance its regional influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking during a panel at the Warsaw Security Forum on Wednesday, Lt. Gen. Tomasz Piotrowski, who leads Poland\u2019s Armed Forces Operational Command, said the exercise enabled Moscow to test offensive measures against the alliance\u2019s Eastern European members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have no doubts that Russia is very determined to regain the stage as a global power,\u201d Piotrowski said. \u201cWhen Russia plans to execute exercises, we suffer a lot, not only during the exercises. Russia uses \u2026 [information warfare], provocations, coercion, spying and [cyber operations]. These were all executed during the Zapad 2021 exercise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Polish commander said hostile actions against NATO\u2019s Eastern European began long before Zapad officially began in September.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Russian military \u201cannounced already in January 2021 that the Zapad exercise had begun. Land exercises will take place until October 2021,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russian government news agency Tass reported July 2 that the country\u2019s National Guard would hold the Zaslon 2021 drill later that month as part of the overarching Zapad exercise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Piotrowski, this year\u2019s edition of Zapad \u201cwas bigger than Zapad 2020 and 2019 \u2014 not by the number of troops, but for sure by the capabilities that were used, types of units, such as airborne, special forces, maritime and others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia\u2019s Defence Ministry described the exercise as \u201cstrategic,\u201d stating that more than 200,000 troops from Russia and Belarus participated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Lt. Gen. Andreas Marlow, commander of the 1st German-Dutch Corps in M\u00fcnster, Germany, said during the same panel that one of the challenges NATO faces is \u201ca difference of threat perception.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAllies who border with Russia have a different threat perception than those who do not,\u201d Marlow said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Planning Land Warfare on the Eastern Flank? Gen. @general_ben<\/a> | Phillip A. Petersen | Gen. @AndreasMarlow<\/a> | Gen. Tomasz Piotrowski @Poland_MOD<\/a> | Gen. (R) Dariusz Wro\u0144ski @Aeromobilny<\/a> | Anna Maria Anders – @FundPulaski<\/a> @gmfus<\/a> #WSF2021<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/W3D4oa6cm4<\/a><\/p>— WarsawSecurityForum (@WarsawForum) October 6, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote>