Russian media: Lukashenka sells weapons to militants

“Novye Izvestiya” newspaper writes today that Minsk illegally sells Russian arms.

According to “Novye Izvestiya”, Minsk denies statements spread by freeing media concerning delivering S-300 missile systems from Belarus to Iran. Israel refrains from official statements on the issue so far, though the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee held a closed session and discussed an issue on Belarusian military supplies to another country, Syria, which further delivers arms to Hezbollah, a Lebanon radical group, Tel Aviv supposes.

Fuss about exporting weapons to Iran was raised by the media of the Islamic Republic. Iranian information agency Tehera said Tehran had bought two S-300 missile systems from Belarus and more from “another state”. Minsk reacted immediately. Yesterday, head of the State Military Industrial Committee of Belarus Uladzimir Laurenyuk said that Belarus hadn’t held negotiations with Tehran on this issue and hadn’t sold S-300 systems or their elements to Iran.

Information about military contacts between Minsk and the Near and Middle East countries, first of all Iran and Syria, rises to surface regularly. So, the Syrian-Belarusian joint commission on military cooperation held a sitting in Damask in April. According to Syrian media, “the parties reached an agreement on all questions on cooperation between the military industrial complexes and military forces of the two countries”. This situation provokes Washington’s reaction.

Earlier, the US Congress adopted the Belarus Arms Transfers Accountability Act. The Americans think Belarus is a significant supplier of rockets, mortars, antitank weapons, and mines to Palestinian extremist groups and the states considered by the US sponsors of terrorism, such as Iran and Syria. Besides, Washington accuses Minsk of exporting Mi-24 helicopters, artillery systems and armored combat vehicles to the Government of Sudan, tanks to North Korea, and military aircraft and aircraft engines to Iran.

Israeli analytical center DEBKA focusing on military theme says Damask is negotiating with Minsk on purchasing S-300 systems. Israel believes that the arms Tehran and Damask buy are sold to Hezbollah and Hamas militants. Yossi Baidatz, the head of the research division of Israeli Military Intelligence, has recently addressed the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee at the closed sitting.

As “Novye Izvestiya” learnt, Baidatz discussed deliveries of Russian-origin missiles to Lebanese radicals from Syria. He said it shouldn’t be regarded as weapons smuggling. According to him, it is an officially organized transfer because “arms deliveries from Syria are organized by the Syrian regime”. As far as the committee head knows, Hezbollah has an arsenal of thousands of rockets of all different types.

Independent observers from Minsk suppose the information about military cooperation between Belarus and Near East countries is connected with “the financial problems of the government” that needs money.

Andrei Sannikov, a former deputy foreign minister and the European Belarus civil campaign leader, told “Novye Izvestiya”: “The disastrous financial situation in the country makes Alyaksandr Lukashenka sell anything. He doesn’t have moral barriers not to do this.”