About a hundred Belarusian enterprises serve the Russian military-industrial complex. Even those who you would not expect work to directly support the Russian army in its aggression.
At the end of June 2024, the EU introduced new sanctions against Russia and Belarus. They included, in particular, "Belarusian Optical and Mechanical Association" ("BelOMO") and enterprises that are part of this holding. "BelOMO" is a manufacturer and supplier of sights for the Russian army. This is not the only plant in Belarus that has come under Western sanctions for aiding Russian aggression in Ukraine. In February 2024, PJSC "Peleng", the 566th Radio-Electronic Weapons Repair Plant, and the Orshan Aircraft Repair Plant were added to the sanctions lists.
But there are much more Belarusian enterprises that service Russian military orders, as reported by the Belarusian state media themselves. Orshansk Legmash, which previously produced equipment for light industry, now manufactures components for the Russian Grad anti-aircraft missile system. OJSC "Stankagomel" — machine tools for Russian enterprises of the military industry. The textile manufacturer "Magateks" signed an agreement with the Chechen company "Erzu" on the tailoring of military uniforms.
Some Belarusian factories, which have found themselves on the verge of bankruptcy due to Western sanctions and poor state leadership, are trying to develop new capacities specifically for military orders from the Russian Federation. This currently helps to keep both enterprises and the Belarusian economy in general afloat, because a significant part of everything that Belarus currently earns is money received for the sale of certain equipment, components, mechanisms, and weapons to Russia.
In May 2024, Belpol's "Arms Baron" investigation was published, which detailed how Belarusian companies profit from aggression against Ukraine. Representatives of "Belpol" claim that the production of sights in Belarus for. "We can say that more than 37 companies are involved in the production of one type of sight for tanks, armored personnel carriers and grenade launchers, according to already specified data. And in general, more than 250 large and small companies are involved in the production of anything for Russia.
And these are not only large enterprises such as "Peleng" (design and construction enterprise of the optical and electronic industry) or MMZ (Minsk Motor Plant), but also small workshops or even correctional colonies. Thus, according to "Belpol", the labor of prisoners of colony No. 9 (the city of Horky, Mogilev region) is used to manufacture tank panoramic sights.
In order to circumvent Western sanctions and purchase the necessary components, according to the investigators, front companies are created, for example, the Belarusian-Chinese company "Shenzhen 5G Hi-Tech Innovation Co. Limited", which fell under Western sanctions, or "Laboratory of Additive Technologies" LLC, which is engaged in scientific research and development. According to Belpol, some parts for the production of sights in Belarus were purchased through these enterprises.
In another Belpol investigation, it was about the Amkador machine-building holding, which is under Western sanctions and is also, according to available data, involved in the execution of a Russian defense order. One of the subsidiaries, which is part of the Amkador management system, produces the Vartava artillery guidance system and the Svisloch SVT attack drones for the interests of the Russian army.
At enterprises engaged in military production for the Russian Federation, new lines are opening, vacancies are appearing and salaries are rising. Receiving large orders at the expense of the Russian military budget, enterprises begin to introduce new capacities, make additional working hours and even make changes. The rest of the enterprises, those that are not involved in "defense" or the production of dual-purpose goods, usually only have to hang on to support from the budget.
With the beginning of a full-scale war, the economic dependence of Belarus on Russia became almost absolute. And Lukashenka's Lukashenko's governance has led tohas led to the fact that for many Belarusians, enterprises working in the military industry have become a lifeline that allows them to earn decent money in the conditions of sanctions and the general economic situation. But do the employees of these factories realize that their well-being is paid for by the lives of Ukrainians? Are they "ordinary Belarusians" who are "out of politics, "just doing work"? Work, the results of which destroy the lives and well-being of ordinary Ukrainians.
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