Azerbaijan received air defense systems from Belarus, according to a report by OCCRP, which were deploying during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
In a series of leaked records, it has been revealed that Belarusian arms manufacturer Tetraedr has signed at least 16 contracts to supply and support Azerbaijan's military. The Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) has reported that these contracts include the sale of air defense weapons, with Tetraedr's Pechora-2TM surface-to-air missile systems being notably mentioned.
The sale of these weapons was reportedly used by Azerbaijan against Armenia during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War and subsequent clashes. According to one leaked Tetraedr report, the company's Pechora-2TM systems are credited with downing 11 unmanned aerial vehicles.
The revelations come at a time when relations between Armenia and Belarus have been deteriorating for years, largely due to Belarus' support for Azerbaijan. This has led to a significant strain in the alliance between the two countries, both of which are members of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO).
The leaks about the sale of weapons to Azerbaijan by Belarus were conducted by the investigative organization Bellingcat. In 2024, Politico published a report based on leaked documents detailing the alleged supply of advanced military hardware from Belarus to Azerbaijan between 2018 and 2022.
Notably, two contracts, worth over $13 million in total for repairs, maintenance, and support of Pechora-2TM systems, were signed by Tetraedr shortly after an October 2017 visit to Minsk by Azerbaijan's Defence Minister, Zakir Hasanov.
In response to these revelations, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared in June 2024 that no Armenian officials would visit Belarus while Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenka was in power. Lukashenka, in turn, stated that Azerbaijan may have purchased weaponry from Belarus, but also stated that Belarus was open to selling to Armenia as well.
Despite the Armenian Defence Ministry not responding to questions from the OCCRP, the leaked records provide a clear picture of the arms deal between Belarus and Azerbaijan, raising questions about the role of these weapons in the ongoing conflict between the two countries.
