Belarus claims that Russian Iskander missile systems are ready for use | News about the Russian-Ukrainian war

The weapons deployment comes amid increasing pressure from Moscow on Minsk to support its invasion of Ukraine.

The Iskander tactical missile systems and the S-400 air defense systems that Russia has stationed in Belarus are fully ready to carry out the tasks assigned to them, said a senior Belarusian official.

“Our servicemen, crews have fully completed their training at 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 of Ideology at the Ministry of Defense of Belarus. video posted online on Sunday.

“These types of weapons [Iskander and S-400 systems] today they are on combat duty and are fully ready to perform their assigned tasks”.

It is unclear how many of the nuclear-capable Iskander systems have been deployed to Belarus since Russian President Vladimir Putin said in June that Moscow would supply Minsk with the Iskander and air defense systems.

The news comes in the middle of Moscow increasing pressure on Minsk to support its invasion of Ukraine, now in its 10th month with no end in sight.

Russian forces used Belarus as a launch pad for their failed attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv in February, and there has been a growing wave of Russian and Belarusian military activity in recent months.

Iskander-M, a mobile guided missile system codenamed SS-26 Stone by NATO, replaced the Soviet Scud. Its two cruise missiles have a range of up to 500 km (300 miles) and can carry conventional or nuclear warheads.

This reach reaches deep into the territory of Belarus’ neighbors – Ukraine and NATO member Poland – leading to strained relations with Minsk.

The S-400 system is a Russian mobile surface-to-air missile interception system (SAMS) capable of engaging aircraft, drones, and cruise missiles.

Kasinski also said that the country’s military aircraft had been converted to carry “special aviation munitions”.