Weapons are not taken. Because of what Lukashenka decided to integrate with Russia
On September 9, Belarus and Russia, during a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko, finally accept the “road maps” that will lead to greater integration of the two countries. Their approval scheduled for October-November this year. Lukashenka agreed to this step, associated with an almost complete loss of sovereignty, not only because of the massive protests that began last year after the official election results were announced in the country. For many years Belarus dropped to 26th place through the rating of world arms dealers.
This is a rather sharp drop, considering that in 2019, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute SIPRI, it was ranked 16th. And in 1996, when Lukashenka came to power, Belarus began an active arms trade with the sale of military property of the former Soviet Belarusian Military District. Then it was among the top ten countries of arms dealers in the world. Last year, the revenue of the main enterprises of the Goskomvoenprom fell by 20 percent.
As follows from report Center for Analysis of the World Arms Trade, Russia, Israel, Ukraine and Belarus. As for Belarus, in 2018 export volume goods and services related to the arms trade accounted for about 2.1 percent of GDP, a figure that halved in 2019. This includes both the sale of new weapons and the old, Soviet-style. In 2020, the Belarusian military-industrial complex became more dependent on Russia. If earlier components could be purchased in Western countries, now, after the sanctions imposed in connection with the protests in 2020, components are purchased mainly in Russia.
The main buyers of Belarusian weapons are Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, China, Myanmar, Laos, Indonesia, Bangladesh, India, UAE, Serbia, Bulgaria, Uganda, Angola.
A third of Belarusian arms exports to the regions of Africa and Asia. Moreover, dictatorial regimes (for example, Ethiopia or Eritrea) often become its buyers. Contacts with most African countries have been established since the signing of the charter of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1998 by Belarus. According to the Belstat TV channel, in 2020 Minsk traded arms with 16 African countries.
Soviet-style armored vehicles are supplied to African countries (for example, the Cayman armored vehicles). Asian countries (Myanmar, India, Indonesia, Laos) buy air defense systems and radio electronics from Belarus. Until recently, the UAE was supplied with electronic warfare equipment and tractors from the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant. Bulgaria, Slovakia, Serbia previously purchased weapons of the Soviet era, but these supplies after the imposition of sanctions are most likely frozen.
In terms of sales of the component base, Belarus mainly cooperates with Russia – it supplies radio electronics, optoelectronic systems of sighting complexes and the MZKT chassis.
Belarusian military expert Egor Lebedok believes that aviation sanctions and restrictions on the supply of Western components have caused serious damage to the Belarusian military-industrial complex.
The complex of new Belarusian weapons was focused on foreign components
– Of course, this is most painful for high-tech weapons. First of all, these are communication systems of the same enterprise “Agat” (a leading enterprise in the production of automated control systems for defense purposes. – Approx. RS), where even some plugs, cables and sockets of American or Canadian origin. There are a lot of such components that are unsuitable in the world, but are only suitable for the Russian or Middle Eastern market. This also applies to communications, and engines for MZKT tank vehicles, and gearboxes. This also applies to armored vehicles. For example, the new MZKT armored cars were created with Finnish steel. A whole range of new Belarusian weapons.
Belarusian expert on defense and military-industrial complex issues, independent military observer Alexander Alesin that Belarus partly uses schemes to bypass the sanctions, but the military-industrial complex enterprises still suffered from them.
Weapons – to make friends and sell tractors
– First of all, this is Radar (the managing company of the Radar Systems holding). MZKT – Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant. At the moment, Russia is using their chassis for mobile missile systems of various types, including carriers of nuclear weapons. Peleng is the leading enterprise in the optoelectronic industry in Belarus and the 558th enterprise is an aircraft repair plant.
Belarus does not disclose the official buyer of the arms; it is also known about the facts when Minsk sold arms in the country where the international embargo was in effect.
In one of the UN reports that got into the press approvedthat Belarus was one of the participants in the scheme for the supply of military equipment to Libya bypassing the international embargo. In particular, we are talking about the supply of Mi-24 helicopters to the Libyan National Army, which opposes the officially recognized national accord.
Also in February of this year, a couple of weeks after the military coup in Myanmar, at Yangon airport noticed the arrival IL-62 transport of the private Belarusian company Rada Airlines with supposedly military cargo.
1996 UN inspectors found Belarusian artillery in sanctioned Iraq.
In 2004, she banned the receipt of weapons in Sudan, because a civil war broke out there. The embargo is still in effect. But the trade continued. For example, in the campaign report Human Rights First saidthat in 2004-2006 Belarus sold 41 combat vehicles and 12 military aircraft to Sudan in circumvention of the embargo.
Alexander Alesin says that Belarus has always traded arms from the countries of Southeast Asia, Africa and China, supplies to the former republics of the USSR.
– These are our clients as they have been and have remained. But the main thing for us is to sell tractors. Weapons – to make friends and sell tractors. For example, we sold weapons to Egypt in order to establish the production of tractors and MAZs there. It was the same with Venezuela, Azerbaijan and Turkey.
Violations that were recorded in some countries when the monitoring of the international embargo was observed, which has been observed in the past few years. This led to the fact that Minsk became dependent as well. The signing of “integration cards” may lead to the fact that Belarus continues to ignore international restrictions on arms supplies to those countries that include an arms embargo.
– Now Russia has spoiled relations with Western countries, which may not hesitate to sell weapons anywhere in the world. Previously, Russia, for diplomatic reasons, did not want to spoil relations with the United States, with the leading countries of Europe, – said military observer Alexander Lesin.