Belarus Arms Military with Shahed/Geran Drones

3 July, 2024 Geran-2 (Shahed-136) loitering munitions with its own name "Kochevnik". Photo credits: mass media of Belarus Belarus demonstrated Shahed-136 loitering munitions at the country's Independence Day parade, as seen in relevant photos published online.

During the parade, the drones were mounted on Chinese Great Wall SUVs. There have been no previous reports of Iranian loitering munitions of this type being transferred to Belarus.

Geran-2 (Shahed-136) loitering munitions with its own name "Kochevnik". Photo credits: mass media of Belarus

Additionally, the first letter of the serial number indicates these drones are fully manufactured in Russia.

The demonstration suggests they may have been adopted by the Belarusian army. Recently, the Belarusian army has begun purchasing strike weapons from the Russian Federation to bolster its armed forces. According to the Ministry of Defense of Belarus, this rearmament is in response to strong pressure from NATO and alleged provocations by Ukraine along the Belarusian-Ukrainian border.

Geran-2 (Shahed-136) loitering munitions with its own name "Kochevnik".

Photo credits: mass media of Belarus

In addition to Iranian loitering munitions, Belarus also received Iskander short-range tactical missile systems from Russia. According to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, these systems are capable of using tactical nuclear warheads, a claim repeatedly made by both Belarusian and Russian authorities. In May, exercises were conducted to practice the deployment of these tactical missile systems in the event of a nuclear war.

Previously, Militarnyi reported that in early June, Russian and Belarusian military forces held exercises involving tactical nuclear forces in Belarus.