DEC 25 (Portal) – The Iskander tactical missile systems and the S-400 air defense systems that Russia has deployed in Belarus are fully prepared to carry out their intended tasks, a senior official at the Belarusian Defense Ministry said on Sunday.
“Our soldiers and crews have fully completed their training in the joint combat training centers of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus,” said Leonid Kasinsky, head of the main directorate for ideology at the ministry, in a video published on the Telegram messaging app.
“These types of weapons (Iskander and S-400 systems) are in combat service today, and they are fully prepared to perform tasks for their intended purpose.”
It is not clear how many of the nuclear-capable Iskander systems were transferred to Belarus after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in June that Moscow would supply them and the air defense systems to Minsk.
The news comes amid mounting Moscow pressure on Minsk to back its invasion of Ukraine, now in its 10th month with no end in sight.
Russian forces used Belarus as a launching pad for their failed February attack on the Ukrainian capital, and there has been a rising spate of Russian and Belarusian military activity in recent months.
The Iskander-M, a mobile missile system designated “SS-26 Stone” by NATO, replaced the Soviet “Scud”. Its two guided missiles have a range of up to 500 km (300 miles) and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads.
That reach goes deep into Belarus’ neighbors: Ukraine and NATO member Poland, which has very strained ties with Minsk.
The S-400 system is a Russian mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) interceptor system capable of attacking aircraft, UAVs and cruise missiles, and has an end ballistic missile defense capability.
Kasinsky also said the country’s military aircraft had been modified to carry “special aviation munitions”.
Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Adaptation by Leslie Adler
Our standards: The Thomson Portal Trust Principles.