A defensive agreement between Iran and Belarus includes providing Minsk with drones and missiles in exchange for Tehran to obtain advanced air defense systems, in a step to deepen military cooperation between the two sides amid escalating international tensions.
Arab Defense website – August 25, 2025: Iran and Belarus have reached a defensive agreement described as the major, according to the Politico newspaper. The agreement stipulates that Tehran provides Minsk with drones and missiles, in exchange for Iran’s advanced air defense systems from Belarus, in a move that reflects the deepening of military cooperation between the two sides in light of the escalating international tensions.
The Ukrainian Foreign Intelligence Service reported on August 22 that Iran is interested in obtaining assistance from Belarus to renew air defense systems and electronic warfare systems that were damaged during the recent escalation with Israel.
A conflict erupted between Iran and Israel on June 13, as the two parties agreed to a ceasefire on June 24. A few hours after the truce was announced, both countries launched mutual attacks. Despite these initial violations, the armistice is still continuing.
The Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko met Iranian President Masoud Bizchitan in Minsk on August 20.
Although the official agenda focused on trade, investment and broader cooperation, Ukrainian intelligence indicates that Tehran sought the closed doors to obtain a Belarusian assistance in technical military support.
“Unlike Russia, Belarus is less restricted to sanctions in the technical military field, and can become a channel to restore the defense capabilities of Iran,” the statement said.
Tehran and Mingsk are two ally of Moscow in its comprehensive war against Ukraine, as Iran has provided Russia with drones and ballistic missiles used in attacks on Ukraine, while Belarus allowed the Kremlin to use its territory as a base for its operations against Ukraine.
Iran is also seeking assistance to address the severe shortage of energy generation equipment and agricultural machinery, according to the report.
Intelligence said: “For Mings, this represents an opportunity to participate in projects that significantly exceed the officially announced topics. Iran plans to use Belarus as another channel to reach the goods subject to sanctions.”
Belarus has advanced air defense capabilities, which is highly supported by Russia, and falls within the unified air defense system for the independent Commonwealth countries (the Association of Independent Countries). These capabilities include long-range systems such as S-400 capable of intercepting planes and ballistic missiles, and medium-range S-300 systems, in addition to short-term systems such as Tor-M2 that block aircraft, helicopters and drones. Belarus also has local systems such as Buk-MB2K, S-200 and OSA-Akm still operating in different locations. Besides, it depends on electronic warfare systems and radars such as SPN-30, Groza-6 and Sapsan, and detection radars such as P-18, P-35/37 and PRV-9, which gives it an integrated capacity for multi-level air defense, and makes it an important partner in regional and international military cooperation, including the possibility of cooperation with Iran to enhance its defensive capabilities.
The article appeared Iran, expecting a major deal with Belarus to obtain advanced air defense systems first on the Arab defense site.
