The Kremlin is likely to include elements of Belarus' defense industrial base in Moscow's larger effort to retool the Russian military to support the protracted war against Ukraine.

This is stated in a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

The self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, during a meeting with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin on February 17 in Moscow, said that the aerospace industry of Belarus is ready to produce Su-25 attack aircraft for the Russian military with the support of Russian technologies.

Lukashenko also said that the Belarusian state-owned Minsk Automobile Plant began producing components for Russia's KamAZ (a Russian manufacturer of heavy trucks), and expressed his willingness to help Russia produce electronic components to replace lost Western imports.

In addition, Lukashenko stated that Belarus is 100% implementing the indefinite agreements on cooperation in the field of defense and security, which Belarus and Russia agreed on "three months ago".

"Additional Su-25s and truck parts are likely not critical to the success of Russia's long-term military effort. Despite Lukashenko's claims, the Kremlin can seize Belarusian factories and retool them to produce critical equipment needed by the Russian military. The Russians also may try to repurpose Russian factories currently engaged or equipped to produce Su-25s and trucks to produce more needed equipment ISW has previously estimated that Russian forces have begun using Belarusian training ranges and simulators to train mobilized Russians to compensate for Russia's deteriorating training capabilities. It appears that the Kremlin is similarly incorporating elements of the Belarus Defense Forces to increase the power of Russian defenses,as Putin seeks to activate Russia's defense-industrial complex to support a protracted war with Ukraine," the ISW report said.

We will remind, on February 17,

met with Putin again.

The day before, he declared that he would enter 

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