The military forces of Belarus are almost exclusively armed with Soviet-era equipment inherited from the Soviet Union. Belarus has planned to modernize its armed forces with the purchases of communication, navigation, and surveillance means, armoured vehicles, small firearms and body armour. The local defense industry manufactures vehicles, guided weapons and electronic-warfare systems, among other equipment. However, there is no capacity to design or manufacture modern combat aircraft. The sector also undertakes to upgrade work for foreign customers.
T-72B3 – Main Battle Tank
The T-72B3 contract was implemented by the Russian Defense Company “Uralvagonzavod”. A contract was signed in 2012 to launch the modernization program for a total amount of six billion rubles ($150 million). Currently, the Russian army has some 8.000 T-72s on various variants in its arsenal (most of them in reserve). Russian Ministry of Defense decided that all of them would be converted to a T-72B3 standard. By the end of 2013, some 270 units were delivered to the Western Military District.
The T-72B3 is a development of the standard Russian-made T-72B series currently in service in the Russian army. The T-72B3 version was introduced in 2010 and considered as a third-generation of Russian main battle tank.
The main armament of the T-72B3 is a 125mm 2A46M-5 smoothbore gun fitted with a light-alloy thermal sleeve and a bore evacuator. The tank is fitted with a carousel automatic loader mounted on the turret floor and also on the rear wall of the turret. A 7.62 mm PKTM machine gun is mounted coaxially to the right of the main armament and one 12.7 mm NSV machine gun is mounted on the commander’s cupola. The conventional armour of the turret is upgraded with Kontakt-5 explosive reactive armor. Kontakt-5 is a type of third-generation explosive reactive armour (ERA) able to defeat modern armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS) rounds.
BTR-70MB1 8×8 armored vehicle personnel carrier (Picture source Belarus TV footage)
BTR-70MB1 – 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carrier
The BTR-70MB1 is an upgraded version of the Soviet-made BTR-70 that was shown in public for the first time during the November 1980 parade in Moscow. The new vehicle looks very similar to the previous version but motorized with a more powerful engine V-8 KamAZ-7403 V-8 turbocharged diesel developing 260 hp The vehicle will also be fitted with a new transmission and transfer case. Despite an additional weight of 1,500 kg compared to the original BTR-70, the BTR-70MB1 has the capacity to run at a maximum road speed of 92 km/h.
The BTR-70MB1 is fitted with a one-man turret armed with 14.5 KPVT and a 7.62 mm PKVT machine gun. It has a crew of three and can accommodate 9 infantrymen. A main feature of the BTR-70MB1, it has one door on each side of the vehicle between the second and third axles, the upper part of which opens to the front while the lower part folds down to form a step as the Russian-made BTR-80. At the Belarus military Parade of May 9, 2020, the BTR-70MB1 was fitted with a slat armour mounted around the hull and the turret.
BTR-80 upgrade 8×8 armored vehicle personnel carrier (Belarus MoD)
BTR-80 Upgrade – 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carrier
The Belarus version of the BTR-80 shown at a military parade was also fitted with a slat armor around the hull and the turret.
The BTR-80 is an 8×8 Soviet-made wheeled armored personnel carrier that entered into service with the Russian army in the late 1980s. Like the BTR-70 and BTR-60, the BTR-80 has a hull of all-welded steel armour construction. Its layout is similar to the earlier vehicles except that the two petrol engines have been replaced by a single V-8 diesel developing 260 hp, which gives a significant increase in the power-to-weight ratio.
The BTR-80 is also fitted with a one-man turret as the BTR-70, armed with one 14.5 mm KPV heavy machine gun and one 7.62 mm PKVT coaxial machine gun.
The BTR-80 is fully amphibious and is able to carry ten personnel including commander, driver, gunner and seven troops.
Bogatyr 4×4 light tactical vehicle
Bogatyr – 4 light tactical vehicle
The Bogatyr is a light 4×4 tactical vehicle produced jointly by China and Belarus. The design of the vehicle looks very similar to the American Humvee but it’s a variant of the Chinese-made DongFeng Mengshi EQ2050F vehicle.
The Bogatyr has an overall weight of up to 5 t and a passenger capacity of four servicemen. The vehicle is powered by a 152-hp EQ D150-20 water-cooled diesel engine, which produces a speed of up to 105 km/h.
The Bogatyr variant shown at military parade 2020 was armed with a Kalashnikov PKM 7.62 mm medium machinegun mounted on a one-man open-top turret.
Drakon 4×4 light armored vehicle
Drakon – 4×4 armored vehicle
The military also paraded the Dajiang CS/VN3 Drakon (Dragon) armored vehicles, which had been supplied by China. The platform has an overall weight of 8.7 t and a passenger capacity of eight soldiers. The CS/VN3 features a welded monocoque hull, which provides protection against 7.62 mm bullets and small fragments. The Drakon is powered by a 245-hp turbocharged engine, which enables a speed of up to 100 km/h. The Belarusian CS/VN3 vehicle is armed with an NSVT in an open-top manned turret.
Caiman light 4×4 armored vehicle
Caiman – 4×4 armored vehicle
The Caiman is a vehicle fully designed and manufactured in Belarus and according to the manufacturer, the Caiman is not based on the Soviet-made BRDM-2, but was completely developed by the engineers of Belarus offering a new generation of 4×4 armored vehicle. The design of the Caiman seems very similar to the German Fennek, 4×4 reconnaissance vehicle. The driver is seated at the front of the vehicle with excellent vision to his front via three large bulletproof windows.
The roof of the vehicle can be fitted with a ring mount weapon station that can be armed with PKS 7.62mm machine gun, NSV 12.7mmm heavy machine gun, or an AGS 30mm automatic grenade launcher. There is also three smoke grenade launchers and storage basket mounted on each side of the hull.
Lis-PM 4×4 armored vehicle (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Lis-PM – 4×4 armored vehicle
The Lis-PM (Fox-PM) 4×4 armored vehicle is produced locally by the Minsk Wheel Tractors Plant (MZKT Volat) in close cooperation with the Russian industry: in particular, Russia supplies stripped-down VPK-233136 Tigr kits, which are assembled and refitted by MZKT. The Lis-PM has a weight of up to 7.5 t and transports eight soldiers. The vehicle is armed with an NSVT Utyos 12.7 mm heavy machinegun (HMG).
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Volat MZKT-500200 4×4 light truck
Volat MZKT-500200 – 4×4 light truck
The MZKT-500200 is a light tactical truck based on a 4×4 all-wheel drive chassis manufactured by the local company Volat. It features a longitudinal frame attached with two towing forks and one rear towing hook. It is air-transportable by military cargo aircraft such as the C-130, C-160, A-400M, An-22, An-124, and IL-76.
The MZKT-500200’s modular cab structure, made from steel, accommodates one driver and one passenger and can be accessed through two side-doors. Covered with canvas cover and bows, the cargo compartment at the rear section can carry approximately 21 personnel and military equipment. It is equipped with drop sides and a drop tailgate for optimum accessibility.
Nona-M1 2B23 120 mm mortar towed by a Volat truck (Picture source Belarus TV)
Nona-M1 2B23 – 120mm mortar
The Nona-M1 120mm mortar was towed by the MZKT-500200 light truck. The 2B23 NONA-M1 120 mm mortar can fire the mortar ammunition 3OF74 high explosive projectile, used with the 3VOF119 propelling charge. This mortar ammunition claimed to be twice as effective as current 120 mm mortar bombs and is capable of producing a crater 4.1 m to 4.5 m in diameter to a depth of 1.1 m to 1.6 m depending on soil conditions. It is possible to use the whole range of 120 mm mortar bombs and projectiles.
The 2B23 NONA-M1 120mm mortar has a maximum range of 8.8 km and a minimum range of 900 m with a high explosive projectile
MSTA-B 2A65 152mm towed howitzer (Picture source Belarus TV)
MSTA-B 2A65 – 152mm towed howitzer
The 152-mm Msta-B is the latest addition to the long list of Soviet- and Russian-made towed howitzers. Compared to its predecessors, the 2A65 features several radical novelties, of which the most visible one is its thin tube about 40 calibers long and equipped with a double-slot muzzle brake.
The Msta-B howitzer fires most of the in-service 152-mm projectiles, but a new family of projectiles has been developed for it and other similar guns. When the advanced rounds of ammunition are used, a prepacked powder bag is selected from the three types available depending on the mission at hand. The weapon’s range is 24,000 m when firing the latest-generation blast-fragmentation projectile, increasing to 29,000 m when the rocket-assisted blast-fragmentation projectile is used.
Other sophisticated 152-mm rounds recently developed for the 2A65 include cassettes filled with 42 antipersonnel/armor-piercing shrapnel bomblets, each containing 45 g of a high explosive. Another novel round of ammunition is the container dispensing tiny radio transmitters designed to disrupt enemy communications.
Belgrad BM-21A 122mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Belgrad BM-21A – 122mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System
The BelGrad also called BM-21A is 122mm multiple launch rocket system MLRS developed in Belarus to replace the Soviet BM-21 Grad. It successfully passed trials in 1997 and entered service with the Belarusian Army in 2001. The 122 mm rocket launcher unit is mounted on the MAZ-6317 6×6 heavy utility truck chassis. The rocket tube arrangement is a single rectangular bank of four layers each with 10 tubes.
The BelGrad has a reloading system located at the rear of the crew cab with 40 rockets ready to be loaded. This multiple launch rocket system is automatically reloaded in less than 2 minutes. It can be reloaded manually within 7 minutes
Polonez 300mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Polonez – 300mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System
The Polonez is a 300mm Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) developed in Belarus by the Company BelSpetsVneshTechnika (BSVT). The rocket launcher unit is mounted at the on the Volat MZKT-7930-300 8×8 military truck chassis. It is operated by a crew of three including a commander, driver and operator. The rockets can be fired either from the driver’s cab or from a remotely located vehicle with the help of a remote control unit.
The Volat truck carries two blocks of rocket launcher containers divided into two rows. It can fire unguided and guided rockets with a range from 50 km to 200 km with GPS guided rocket.
Tor-M2K short-range air defense missile system (Picture source Belarus MoD)
TOR-M2K – short-range surface-to-air defense missile system
The TOR-M2K is wheeled version of the Russian-made TOR-M2 mounted on a 9А331МК chassis developed by the Belarusian Company «MZKT» mounting two 9M 334 missile modules, each with four 9М9331 missiles. The Tor-M2 can simultaneously engage up to 48 processed targets and ten tracked targets. The TOR-M2 can engage a target at the range from 1,000 to 12,000 m and to an altitude from 10 to 10,000 m.
S-300PS long-range air defense missile system (Picture source Belarus MoD)
S-300PS – Long-Range Surface-to-Air missile
The S-300 PS (first generation) with NATO denomination SA-10B (Grumble B), is a more mobile alternative of the basic version of surface-to-air missile system S-300 PT, the principal difference resides, in the use of the chassis of a truck 8×8 MAZ-7910, on which the four launcher missile containers are mounted, contrary to S-300 PT which uses a tractor drawn trailer.
The S-300 PS is also capable of destroying ballistic missile targets, and is regarded as one of the most potent anti-aircraft missile systems currently fielded Its radars have the ability to simultaneously track up to 100 targets while engaging up to 12. S-300 PS deployment time is five minutes. A typical battery S-300 PS group would include one 5P85S TEL, two 5P85D TEL/Transloaders, and one mobile 5N63S Flap Lid B radar.
Uragan-M 220mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System (Picture source Belarus TV footage)
Uragan-M – 220mm Multiple Rocket Launcher System
The Uragan-M is a Belarus upgrade version of the Soviet-made Uragan BM-27 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS). The rocket launcher unit is mounted at the rear of a MAZ-631705 6×6 military truck chassis. Launcher unit is similar to the BM-27 with 16 launch tubes for 220 mm rockets. The Uragan-M is equipped with a computerized fire control system and modern communications suite. It has a maximum firing range of 36 km.
Flute 80mm MLRS Multiple Launch Rocket System (Picture source Belarus TV footage)
Flute – 80mm Multiple Launch Rocket System
The Flute is a new generation of MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) developed in Belarus by the company BSVT-New Technologies LLC based in Minsk. The Flute MLRS combat vehicle uses widely spread Soviet 80 mm C-8 series non-guided aircraft missiles launched from an 80 charge launcher made on the basis of the SHTS (“Asilak”) 4×4 armored vehicle. The Asilak is a Belarusian-licensed version of the Russian Buran family of armoured vehicles made on the chassis of a GAZ-3308 Sadko truck.
The Flute fires the S-8 family of 80 mm unguided rockets with a firing range from 1 to 3 km with a flight speed of up to 750 m/s.
Rubon MZKT-490100 4×4 armored vehicle (Source picture Volat)
Rubon MZKT-490100-018 – 4×4 armored vehicle
The MZKT-490100-018 is a 4×4 light armored vehicle designed and manufactured by the Belarus Company Volat based on the MZKT-490100 chassis. The vehicle is fitted with a remote weapon station DBM-T12.7 armed with a 12.7mm heavy machine gun and the multifunctional reconnaissance system BRDM-4B.
Defender 6×6 armored vehicle personnel carrier APC (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Defender – 6×6 armored vehicle personnel carrier
The Defender is a new 6×6 wheeled APC (Armored Personnel Carrier designed by the company 140th Repair Plant. It was unveiled during MILEX defense exhibition in 2019. The vehicle is based on a MAZ-631708 6×6 truck chassis. it can accommodate up to 14 military personnel and has a weight of 19,800 kg.
The Defender is motorized with a yaMZ-7511 developing 400 hp coupled to a YaMZ-239 gearbox.
UBP MRAP Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle (Picture source Belarus MoD)
UBP – MRAP universal combat platform
The UBP is a 4×4 military vehicle in the MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) category designed and manufactured by the Belarus Company OKB TSP. The UBP is a two-axle four-wheel drive vehicle, structurally similar to some trucks. The vehicle uses a cabover layout, with the engine located under the crew cab. The hull of the vehicle is made to reflect the improved resistance to fire and explosion.
Quadro-1400 armed drone (Picture source Belarus Mod)
Quadro-1400 – UAV armed drone
The Quadro-1400 is made by the Display Design Bureau, a Belarusian leader in small drones for the military. It mounts a pair of rocket-launching tubes RPG-26 on a massive quadcopter to be used as a tank-hunting robot.
UBAK-25 drone for reconnaissance (Picture source Belarus MoD)
UBAK-25 – Drone for reconnaisance
JSC “558th Aviation Repair Plant” developed prototype strike UHF (UBAK) with a combat range of up to 25 km and modernized the multipurpose UHF “Grif-100” for the use of small-sized small-caliber aviation bombs and missiles.
UBAK-25 is a tactical reconnaissance and strike LHC, with a single-use UAV designed to conduct aerial reconnaissance and engage fixed and inactive targets – openly located manpower and easily vulnerable equipment. The complex includes two UAVs built on the basis of the previously created reconnaissance UAV 1LA-10K “Bekard-2”.
The mass of the UAV is 12 kg. A high-explosive fragmentation warhead weighing 2.3 kg is located inside the UAV fuselage. Guidance and capture is carried out on a television image transmitted to the UAV operator.
The tactical radius of action for reconnaissance is 25 km, and for hitting targets – 10 km.
Whistle robot fitted with 57mm rocket launcher system (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Whistle Robot – UGV with 57mm MLRS
Belarus Company BSVT – New Technologies LLC has developed the Whistle robotic system. This is a ground-based unmanned stealth combat vehicle equipped with a turntable with a package of 18 guides for various modifications of the S-5 rocket 57-mm shells.
Due to the presence of an optical-electronic station and a data processing system using artificial intelligence, the robotic complex is capable of detecting targets at distances up to 3500 meters.
The combat robot is controlled remotely via a secure radio channel with patented technology for countering electronic warfare. The battery life of the robotic complex is 24 hours.
MZKT-741501 truck tractor and MZKT-720100 semi-trailer (Picture source Volat)
MZKT-741501 truck tractor and MZKT-720100 semi-trailer
The Goskomvoenprom presented a new development of the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant OJSC – a heavy-duty road train as part of the MZKT-741501 truck tractor and the MZKT-720100 semi-trailer with a carrying capacity of 52 tons. The road train is designed to transport heavy tracked vehicles and bulky goods on roads of all categories.
The truck tractor with a payload of 23 tons on the fifth wheel coupling is based on the mass-produced MZKT-793000-313 chassis, used as the transport base of the upgraded Polonaise-M MLRS.
As a result of modernization, the wheelbase and overall length of the product were reduced, and the maximum speed was reduced from 70 to 65 km / h. An engine with increased power of 525 hp was installed (modification TMZ-84632).
The use of a hydromechanical transmission in the design of the tractor allows us to provide advantages in the operation of the road train in difficult road conditions, including when driving over rough terrain and in a convoy, as well as during the training of novice mechanic drivers.
The MZKT-720100 is a heavy-duty semi-trailer with a carrying capacity of 52 tons. It is intended for transportation of heavy tracked vehicles (for example, T-72 tanks), as well as bulky goods as part of a road train.
The total length of the MZKT-720100 semi-trailer is 14.35 m, width – 3.2 m, height in transport position with raised ladders – 3.8 m, gross weight – 68 t (16 t – own weight of the product, plus 52 t of carrying capacity).
Rosa solid-state radar (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Rosa solid-state radar
They were developed by the flagship of the Belarusian military-industrial complex in the field of development of radar systems – OJSC KB Radar, the managing company of the holding Radar Systems. These are the Rosa-M mobile solid-state radar for detecting low-altitude targets with a ring phased antenna array (RRL) and Vostok-3D three-coordinate radar.
Rosa-M radar navigation system solves the problems of automatic detection, measurement of primary coordinates (azimuth, range), speed of an air object (AT), as well as automatic detection and tracking of HE tracks at low and very low altitudes when exposed to active and passive interference, recognition of HE classes (aircraft, helicopter, cruise missile, balloon, unrecognized target) and the issuance of radar information to external consumers, as well as determining the azimuth of the director of active noise interference.
It consists of two cars – a hardware cabin and an antenna platform. When creating the mobile version of the station, a number of complex technical problems were solved for raising hydromechanical devices and placing the main element of the station (ring AFAAR) at an altitude of up to 35 m on the chassis of one transport unit, which allows radar reconnaissance in any terrain.
The detection range of HE with an effective reflecting surface (EOP) of 1 square meter at an altitude of 25 m is 30 km. The deployment (folding) time does not exceed half an hour.
Due to the high mobility of the station, the radio engineering units of the air defense forces have the opportunity to create an “unpredictable” for a potential intruder of the radar field.
Vostok radar (Picture source OJSC)
Vostok-3D coordinate radar
Another development of KB Radar OJSC is the Vostok-3D three-coordinate radar, which embodies the original technical solution for using the meter wavelength range in the rangefinder channel and the decimeter wavelength in the altimeter channel. The system is a complex of two radars.
The station surpasses similar complexes in terms of performance characteristics thanks to the use of modern achievements of radar, the latest digital technologies, advanced design and technological solutions.
“Vostok-3D” is a new, completely Belarusian development, capable of replacing all known three-coordinate radars and radars as part of a rangefinder and altimeter.
This complex is able to efficiently detect and accurately determine the coordinates of air targets at a maximum range of up to 360 km, HE made using the stealth technology, as well as small targets with a small effective reflective surface.
Moreover, all tasks are performed in automatic mode, including the detection and tracking of air objects.
The radar provides a high degree of protection against high-precision weapons through the use of 2 frequency ranges, as well as high radar stealth due to the use of a noise-like sounding signal with low peak power.
The MZKT chassis provides high mobility of the station, and it takes only eight minutes to roll out a three-person crew
S-150 S-band solid-state radar (Picture source Belarus MoD)
S-150 – S-band solid-state radar
For the first time at the parade, a new S-band solid-state radar S-150 with a phased array will be presented, created at NP OKB TSP LLC.
The use of special methods and algorithms for signal processing allowed 1.5-2 times to improve the accuracy of determining the coordinates of targets and recognition of their class by acoustic portrait. In addition, the radar-150 allows for reliable tracking of targets in conditions of intense electronic countermeasures.
The detection range of HE with an image intensifier of 1 square meter at an altitude of 25 m is 150 km. An air target with a 3-5-square-meter image intensifier flying at an altitude of 100 m, the radar-150 is capable of detecting at a distance of up to 45 km.
The MZKT-65272-010 chassis provides high station mobility. The deployment time (coagulation) prepared by the calculation of three people is not more than 5 minutes.
At the end of February 2020, the radar-150 was also involved in the first phase of flight tests of prototypes of 9M318 anti-aircraft guided missiles for the Buk-MB2 air defense system, where it confirmed its tactical and technical characteristics.
Satellite communication system on Trakon 4×4 armored (Picture source Belarus MoD)
Satellite communication systems
A number of samples of mobile satellite communication stations will take part in the parade on May 9. A whole line of the latest tools developed at AGAT Management Systems OJSC, the management company of the Geoinformation Management Systems holding, was adopted by the Belarusian army in March 2020 and transferred to the troops. This is the nodal and terminal satellite communication stations in the stationary and mobile version, as well as mobile means for installation on an armored base or automobiles.
All satellite stations provide the opportunity to work not only with the Belintersat-1 domestic satellite but also with the satellites of countries with which coordination agreements have been signed. At the same time, it became possible to use the constellation of spacecraft, the ground-based control complex of the national satellite communication and broadcasting system as a single integrated system.
New communication systems allow the transfer of large flows of information over a considerable distance in real-time without using the global Internet.
The technical characteristics and combat capabilities of satellite communication stations provide work in new, previously unused modes of operation, in a complex configuration and architecture of construction, in various applications, frequency ranges and with high noise immunity.
Satellite communication system on 6×6 truck (Picture source Belarus MoD)
