Russia relocates Iskander missile to Belarus, Ukrainian sources claim

The Ministry of Defence of Belarus officially announced that they got the R-500 Iskander ballistic missiles with an estimated flight range of over 2,000 km.

Thanks to Belarus, which decided to show off the new weapons that Minsk had received from Russia, the exact version of the transferred Russia’s Iskander operational-tactical complexes are revealed, according to Defense Express.

The fact is that the Ministry of Defense of Belarus added several photos with them to the message that the Belarusian military had already mastered the Iskander. On some of them, a transport-launch container with the R-500 cruise missile is clearly visible.

This missile significantly exceeds the range of 300 km, which is a violation of the Missile Technology Control Regime. According to it, countries (including Russia) undertook not to sell, transfer or assist in the creation of missiles with a flight range of more than 300 km.

Ruslan Chekhov, head of the Missile Forces and Artillery Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Belarus, in the news report stated that Belarus received missiles with a longer range.

"The Republic of Belarus has a sufficient supply of missiles for the complex [meaning Iskander], which will allow performing any task at a distance of up to 500 kilometres. Among the available means for the rocket artillery of the armed forces [Belarus], there was a lack of just such a complex that is capable of performing tasks at a range of more than 300 kilometres," said Ruslan Chekhov.