Russia launched a joint military exercise in Belarus on Thursday, the same day that Ukraine started its previously announced military drills.

The Russia-Belarus exercises, "Allied Resolve 2022," scheduled to continue until February 20, had begun and would center around "suppressing and repelling external aggression," Russia's defense ministry said in a statement.

Soldiers will practice beefing up sections of the Belarusian border to block the delivery of weapons and ammunition into the country, among other scenarios, it said.

Moscow and Minsk have not disclosed how many troops are participating in the drills. The Kremlin has said it has no intention of permanently leaving the troops on Belarusian territory.

Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said this week that Ukrainian military exercises would also run from February 10 to 20 and that the armed forces would drill with Bayraktar drones and anti-tank Javelin and NLAW missiles provided by foreign partners.

Ukraine has not reported the number of military personnel and weapons involved in its exercises either.

The separate military drills come amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine and diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the situation on all sides.

The advisors to the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France are set to meet over the crisis in Berlin on Thursday.

Since November, Kyiv and some Western countries have accused Russia of assembling heavy troops near the Ukrainian border with a possible intention of "invasion."

Russia has denied the accusation, saying that Russia has the right to mobilize troops within its borders to defend its territory, as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's activities constitute a threat to Russia's border security.

(With input from agencies)