Europe's "Black Hole" series
The Belarus leadership defines cooperation with Russia as the strategic direction of the activity of the enterprises of the Belarus military industry. As was mentioned in the previous chapters, in the days of the Soviet Union, Belarus was an assembly shop for complex technical production for military purposes. For more than ten years after 1991, destructive processes caused by the severing of economic connections among the different countries of the former USSR, privatization of the enterprises, changes in their specialization, or simple bankruptcy took place in the structure of the previously monolithic system of the Soviet military industry. Of course, these processes also directly affected Belarus. At the same time, more than 50 enterprises of the military-industrial complex survived on the territory of this country, and they continue to develop cooperation with more than 400 enterprises in the Russia.
The Legal Basis of Cooperation
The cooperation takes place within the framework of an entire series of intergovernmental agreements. For example, the Intergovernmental Agreement on Industrial, Scientific and Technical Cooperation of the Enterprises of Defense Industries (1994) provides for mutual delivery of electronic components, accessories, etc. In 2003, to preserve and develop the cooperation among defense industry enterprises of Russia and Belarus, the Intergovernmental Agreement on Specialization Preservation of Enterprises Participating in Manufacture of Military Products was signed. The corresponding authorities of both countries accepted at the end of June, 2005 an additional decision on further cooperation between the enterprises of Belarus Goskomvoenprom and those of the Russian military-industrial complex.
The Present Cooperation
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| Alexander Lukashenko with Vladimir Putin |
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The Belarus-Russian Intergovernmental Commission on Military - Technical Cooperation, meant to make this cooperation more effective and qualitative, was created in 2002. Its last session took place on April, 21-22, 2005, in Moscow and Tula (Russia). Among other questions, the issue of signing the Agreement Between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Belarus, concerning mutual protection of the rights on intellectual property created during bilateral military - technical cooperation, was considered during the session. Practical cooperation between the Belarus military enterprises and their Russian colleagues is carried out through the so-called Interstate Financial and Industrial Groups (MFPG). The best-known units of MFPG are: Oboronitelnye sistemi (Defensive systems), Electronnye technologii (Electronic technologies) Tochnost (Accuracy), Aerokosmicheskoe oborudovanie (Space equipment), and also the Interstate Joint Stock Companies (MAK) Vimpel (Pendant) and Skala (Rock). The structures of MFPG and MAK include leading enterprises of the Russian and Belarus military-industrial complex. Noteworthy among their most significant projects created with the participation of the Russian partners are: the Belarus space system of remote ground probing; the basis for transporting the new systems of arms and military technical equipment; modernization of aviation technical equipment; air defense systems; development of cooperation in the sphere of radio communication and electronic optics.
The best example of an interstate financial and industrial group is the MPFG Oboronitelnye sistemi (Defensive systems). On the Belarus side, it includes: the Minsk Factory of Wheeled Tractors (MZKT), the Repair Factory in Borisov, the Alevkurp Research-and-Production Association, and the Belorusbank. The main projects of Oboronitelnye sistemi are the modernization of missile systems S-300PMU and S-125 (Pechora and Pechora – 2M), for which Belarus creates the equipment for processing radar-tracking signals, automatic tracking of the targets, clutter reduction equipment, etc. Besides this joint venture, the Russian - Belarus enterprises Vizir and Soelis, and also the Russian – Belarus - Chinese Xinjiang - Volat Company, are working very effectively. The LEMT Research-and-Production Enterprise (BelOMO) and the Kamerton Specialized Design Office cooperate with the Russian enterprise Russian Institute of Radionavigation and Time (RIRB) (Saint Petersburg) in manufacturing the system for operational monitoring of remote objects (the system of supervision, establishing the object's coordinates, and transferring them to the command point in a real time mode). The Agat, 2556 Factory on Radio-Electronic Arms Repair and Beltekheksport companies, together with Russian enterprises, continue to work on establishing joint ventures in the areas of repair, modernization and creation of new technical equipment for the Air Force and air defense. It is also planned to complete the transformation of the Minsk Research Instrument-Making Institute's (MNIPI) subsidiary – the Ajax Research-and-Production Enterprise – into a joint Belarus-Russian enterprise, with Russian investment.
The Future of the Cooperation
The representatives of the Belarus and Russian military industries acknowledge that both countries are at the threshold of creating a combined system of military - technical cooperation, which also will include a unified supervising body. The purpose of this step is to avoid a situation in which both Russia and Belarus work simultaneously on the modernization of the same system (as happened, for example, with MiG-29 planes). Simultaneously, the creation of the joint center of service, and the modernization and repair of arms and technical military equipment of the Oboronpromservis anti-aircraft defense proceed at full speed. This interstate structure, which is coordinated by Oboronitelnye sistemi, will provide maintenance of battle readiness of the air defense systems placed in the territory of Belarus, the Kaliningrad area (Russia) and in the northwest region of Russia.
Additionally, the military-industrial complexes of Russia and Belarus have increased their efforts to create a complex aircraft control system and an aviation complex of distant radar-tracking supervision. They also have joined forces in development and manufacture of radio communication equipment of various purposes; and in the field of diagnostics and repair of optical-electronic systems; in joint development, manufacture and export to third countries of modern training simulators, televised sights for armored vehicles and anti-tank missile complexes. The creation on the territory of Russia of the joint Belarus - Russian enterprise with the right to conduct foreign trade, selling military goods, is planned for this purpose. It will consist of the Russian Rosoboronexport, Sykhoi, Konzern PVO Almaz-Antey, Polet, Moscow Scientific Research Institute of Instrument Making" companies, and the Belarus Agat, Beltekheksport and Peleng companies.
Read in the next part:
The largest System of arms sales in Europe
Previous parts:
Europe's Black Hole
Soviet Heritage of Belarus Military Industry
Belarus Military Industry: Gorbachev's Imprint
Belarus' Access to the World's Arms Market
Raise of contemporary Belarus military industry
On the Top of the World Arms Market (1991-2005)
Geography of death trade
Secrets of Balkan Arms Business
The Best Arms for Arab States
Arms for African Wars
Who Arms the Biggest Army in the World?
Tanks for Delhi and Pyongyang
Arms Trade and Fujimori's Resignation
Belarus Weapons Versus American Army
The Buttress of the Iranian Chemical Warfare Program
The Slavic Patron of the Asad Regime
Qaddafi's sophisticated game
Who is to Blame for Darfur Genocide?
Secret of a Lebanese Businessman
Russia Belarus: the Deadly Union
The Slavic Arms Bazaar
Clandestine Routes of the Russian Weapons
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