BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

2006/2/9

Russia to deploy air defense missiles to Belarus

MOSCOW (AP)

Russia will deploy four air defense units in western Belarus next month, a military official said Thursday.

President Vladimir Putin ordered four units of the S-300PS air defense missiles moved to Belarus' western border in late March, deputy Russian air force commander Lt. Gen. Aytech Bizhev said in televised remarks.

The deployment of the missiles, which are capable of shooting down targets some 150 kilometers (90 miles) away, would significantly bolster air defense capabilities of the Russian-Belarusian alliance, Bizhev said.

Belarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, who has become a pariah in the West for his crackdown on opposition and independent media, has built close ties with Russia.

The two nations signed a union agreement in 1996 providing for close political, economic and military ties and their armed forces have held frequent joint drills.

Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan will conduct a joint air defense exercise in April involving Russian military aircraft being deployed to the other two nations, the Interfax Military News Agency reported, citing Bizhev.

Source:

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/i_latestdetail.asp?id=35293