On Sunday, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense announced the delivery of S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems from Russia, with the ministry publishing photos and a video of the railway transport of the equipment.
“Belarus continues its actions aimed at expanding the combat potential of military formations, including equipping the armed forces with modern weapons,” the ministry wrote in a statement.
“The S-400 anti-aircraft missile system is a serious tool for ensuring the security of Belarus and the peaceful work of its citizens,” said Colonel Andrey Lukyanovich, commander of the Belarusian Air Defense Forces, as quoted by the ministry.
The ministry did not disclose the specific location where the modern S-400 systems will be stationed. However, it wrote that “in the near future, the unit (in charge) will assume combat duty.”
Belarusian soldiers underwent training in Russia to familiarize themselves with the system.
Monitoring the movements of Belarusian troops, the “Belarus Hajun” portal revealed that the S-400 systems have been deployed to a military unit situated in Novokolosovo, a central region of Belarus.
Designed for air defense purposes, S-400 systems are officially capable of targeting objects up to 400 kilometers away. However, it is known that in Ukraine, the Russian military used similar weaponry, including the older S-300, to engage ground targets.
If they are located in the Novokolosovo base, the range of the S-400 systems would cover the eastern territory of Poland, reaching as far as the Polish capital Warsaw.
On Thursday, Russian and Belarusian defense ministers, Sergei Shoigu and Viktor Khrenin, signed documents specifying the procedures for storing Russian nuclear weapons in a special warehouse in Belarus. Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko had been pushing for the deployment of such weapons.
The head of the Russian Ministry of Defense, during a press conference, spoke about what he described as an “undeclared war” that the West is waging against Russia and Belarus.
U.S. President Joe Biden stated that his assessment of the nuclear weapons deployment is “extremely negative.”
In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that the construction of a warehouse for storing new weapons in Belarus would be completed by July 2023.
