MINSK, October 26. /TASS/. Threats to the western borders of the Union State are growing, Russian Ambassador to Belarus Boris Gryzlov told the Natsionalnaya Oborona (National Defense) magazine in an interview.

"Threats to our shared western borders are increasing. We can see the consequences of the policy course pursued by the United States and its allies for decades - NATO’s eastward expansion, the military buildup near our borders, and the violation of agreements on arms control," the diplomat said.

Given the West’s provocative policy course toward Russia and Belarus, additional measures have been taken to strengthen the shared defense and security space at the Union State, based on the Union State’s military doctrine, its security concept and the bilateral agreement on security guarantees as part of the Union State, Gryzlov continued. "Our defense capabilities include a regional battlegroup, joint patrols of the Union State’s air borders, a unified regional air defense system and a number of other components," he maintained.