{"id":179871,"date":"2026-03-18T15:04:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T12:04:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/179871\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T15:04:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T12:04:09","slug":"official-520-uavs-defused-in-belarus-in-2025-one-in-three-combat-drones","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/179871\/","title":{"rendered":"Official: 520 UAVs defused in Belarus in 2025, one in three combat drones"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Drone debris in Minsk in July 2025 \n <\/div>\n \n
\n (mil.by)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

March 18, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>About 520 drones were defused in Belarus last year, with one in three being combat drones, Deputy Interior Minister Mika\u0142aj Karpianko\u016d has told the internal troops\u2019 press office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Explosive disposal units have received additional state-of-the-art equipment needed for complex demining tasks, the official said. The Homiel region, bordering Ukraine, has seen a particularly high number of operations, with 12 servicemen awarded military orders and medals for their work, he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus currently operates three unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) centers, with a fourth under development in the Homiel region, Karpianko\u016d said. He noted that the facilities were established following an assessment of the \u201csignificance of drone use\u201d in the ongoing war in Ukraine, in which Minsk supports the Kremlin. Belarusian drone operators have repeatedly traveled to Russia for training and internships, the official noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this month, police in southern Belarus blocked the M10 highway linking Homiel and Novozybkov in Russia after a drone fell to the ground in the Dobru\u0161 district,\u00a0reports said. Residents said they heard explosions, likely caused by bomb technicians detonating the drone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarusian troops regularly use aircraft and surface-to-air missile systems to destroy drones that enter the country\u2019s airspace, according to Andrej \u0141ukjanovi\u010d, commander of the Air Force and Air Defense Forces. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the start of 2026, Belarus has recorded a significant number of airspace violations and incursions, including by attack drones with payload, \u0141ukjanovi\u010d said. Forces on standby have scrambled aircraft and deployed anti-aircraft missile units to destroy unmanned aerial vehicles, he added, without specifying where the drones originated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, Belarusian authorities regularly tested the public warning system, particularly in the southern part of the country, which faces frequent incursions by Russian drones targeting Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Minsk supported the Kremlin by allowing Russian troops to attack Ukraine from Belarusian territory on multiple occasions and by supplying arms to Moscow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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