Belarus Says it Has 1.5 Mln Potential Soldiers Outside Armed Forces

Previous military training between Russia and Belarus (archive - AFP)
Previous military training between Russia and Belarus (archive - AFP)
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Belarus Says it Has 1.5 Mln Potential Soldiers Outside Armed Forces

Previous military training between Russia and Belarus (archive - AFP)
Previous military training between Russia and Belarus (archive - AFP)

Belarus, a small Russian ally bordering Ukraine, has as many as 1.5 million potential military personnel outside its armed forces, a senior official was quoted as saying on Saturday.

President Alexander Lukashenko has supported his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in his year-long war with Ukraine, including by letting him invade from Belarusian territory and by allowing Russia to train newly mobilized troops in Belarus.

Lukashenko this month ordered the formation of a new volunteer territorial defense force of up to 150,000 people. He has said his army would fight only if Belarus was attacked, Reuters said.

"The structures of the organizations, not the Armed Forces, will amount to somewhere up to 1.5 million people in the event of a declaration of martial law and the switch of the economy to a war mode," said State Secretary of the Security Council Alexander Volfovich, according to the state BelTA news agency.

Belarus has a population of around 9.3 million. The country's professional army has about 48,000 troops and some 12,000 state border troops, according to the 2022 International Institute for Strategic Studies' Military Balance.



Iranians Seek Temporary Refuge in Neighboring Türkiye as Conflict with Israel Escalates

Iranians arrive to cross into Iran at Gurbulak Bazargan border post, in Gurbulak, Turkey, Monday, June 16, 2025. (AP)
Iranians arrive to cross into Iran at Gurbulak Bazargan border post, in Gurbulak, Turkey, Monday, June 16, 2025. (AP)
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Iranians Seek Temporary Refuge in Neighboring Türkiye as Conflict with Israel Escalates

Iranians arrive to cross into Iran at Gurbulak Bazargan border post, in Gurbulak, Turkey, Monday, June 16, 2025. (AP)
Iranians arrive to cross into Iran at Gurbulak Bazargan border post, in Gurbulak, Turkey, Monday, June 16, 2025. (AP)

At a border crossing between Türkiye and Iran, Shirin Talebi was anxiously waiting on Monday for her children and grandchildren to arrive from Tehran. The family are planning to stay for a month or two in Türkiye, seeking temporary refuge from the conflict between Israel and Iran.

"I’m here because of safety. They are bombing. My children have small children of their own," said Talebi, who had just arrived at the Gurbulak-Bazargan border crossing from the Iranian city of Urmia.

"Hopefully, it is over in one or two months so we can return to our country," she said.

Türkiye, which shares a 569 kilometer-long (348 miles) border with Iran, has expressed deep concern over the escalating armed conflict between Iran and Israel.

Israel launched an assault on Iran’s top military leaders, uranium enrichment sites and nuclear scientists that it said was necessary to prevent the country from getting any closer to building an atomic weapon. Friday's surprise attack came two days before Iran and the US were set to hold a negotiating session for a deal over Tehran's nuclear program.

Iran has retaliated by firing waves of ballistic missiles at Israel.

There are fears in Türkiye that a prolonged conflict could threaten its security, cause energy disruptions and lead to refugee flows.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated that Türkiye was ready to act as a "facilitator" toward ending the conflict and resuming nuclear negotiations in telephone calls with US President Donald Trump and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Observers have noted an increase in arrivals from Iran since the conflict, though Turkish officials have dismissed social media reports of a large-scale refugee influx as unfounded. Türkiye has not provided any official figures for arrivals.

"Our Ministry of Interior and relevant security units confirm that there is no unusual movement, congestion or irregular crossing at both the Kapıkoy and Gurbulak border gates," the Turkish presidential communications office said.

Türkiye allows Iranians to enter the country without a visa for tourism purposes and stay for up to 90 days.

At Gurbulak, one of the busiest crossings between Türkiye and Iran, bus driver Ferit Aktas had just brought a group of Iranians to the border gate from Istanbul and was waiting to pick up others.

"About a week or 10 days ago, there would be between three and five people (Iranians) who would come for shopping or tourism. But now, I can say, that there are at least 30 Iranians in my vehicle per day," he said.

"They say, ‘We are not safe there and we are forced to come.’ Most of them want to go to Europe, they want to go to Europe through Türkiye," Aktas said.

Mejid Dehimi, also from Umria, arrived in Türkiye for a week-long break, not to escape the conflict. He expressed support for his country’s leaders.

"We are not afraid of death," he said. "We will stand against Israel until our last breath and for as long as our lives allow."