Belarus Review by iSANS — July 20, 2026 

According to Ukrainian monitoring channels, 14 Russian drones were detected in Belarusian airspace between 13 and 19 July 2026. Belarusian Air Force aircraft on alert duty were repeatedly scrambled to intercept them. No reports of drones being shot down or crashing were received.

From 13 to 16 July, Belarus hosted an official visit by an Azerbaijani military delegation led by First Deputy Minister of Defence and Chief of the General Staff Karim Valiyev. The Belarusian Ministry of Defence announced the visit on 13 July, while the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence stated that it had taken place at the invitation of the Belarusian side.

On the same day, Valiyev held talks with Chief of the General Staff of the Belarusian Armed Forces Pavel Muraveika. The sides discussed the current state of bilateral military cooperation and prospects for its further development. Muraveika described existing cooperation as only “the first step” towards broader military ties and highlighted the active implementation of the bilateral cooperation plan. Valiyev, for his part, emphasised the importance of exchanging experience and preserving a shared historical memory.

On 16 July, Valiyev visited the 38th Air Assault Brigade and the 927th Centre for Training and Employment of Unmanned Aerial Systems, where he was briefed on their missions, training facilities, personnel training procedures and examples of Belarusian military equipment. The Azerbaijani delegation showed particular interest in Belarusian-produced weapons and equipment. It also visited the Military Academy of Belarus and a Belarusian defence industry enterprise.

The 6th Mechanised Brigade has introduced training sessions involving servicemen with combat experience. According to the brigade’s Telegram channel on 14 July, personnel who had undergone “real combat tests” are providing instruction on tactics, coordination, weapons employment and unit operations in various conditions, with particular attention to analysing specific combat situations and command decisions. The brigade did not specify who these instructors were, although they were likely Russian personnel with experience of the war against Ukraine. Similar practices were reported previously: in April 2025, personnel from the brigade’s 52nd Independent Tank Battalion underwent training at Russia’s 333rd Training Centre under instructions from Russian servicemen with combat experience in Ukraine.

Since the beginning of 2026, Belarus has intensified efforts to inspect, repair and modernise civil defence shelters. On 15 July, BELPOL reported that, according to a June meeting of the Emergency Situations Commission under the Mahilioŭ Regional Executive Committee, the region has 276 protective shelters, of which 204 are fit for use and 72 remain in unsatisfactory condition. Following a nationwide inspection, 34 facilities are scheduled for decommissioning and 38 for restoration, mainly in Mahilioŭ and Babrujsk. Inspections conducted between February and April 2026 resulted in 66 compliance orders and administrative penalties against 11 officials. Since the beginning of the year, 43 shelters have been restored. The scale and geographical distribution of the work indicate a systematic effort to restore the shelter network and continue strengthening Belarus’s mobilisation preparedness.

On 17 July, the Community of Railway Workers of Belarus published a review of military railway transport between Belarus and Russia covering 2025 and January–April 2026. During 2025, 764 railway carriages delivering military cargo arrived in Belarus from Russia, while 1,154 carriages travelled in the opposite direction. These figures should not be interpreted directly as arms transfers, as they also include, for example, the return of Belarusian units from training in Russia and the deployment of Russian units to Belarus for exercises.

The main deliveries of Russian military equipment took place during the fourth quarter of 2025 and reportedly included missile armaments believed to be intended for Iskander systems, another batch of Tor-M2K air defence systems, equipment for the 1st and 115th Air Defence Missile Regiments, armoured vehicles, aviation munitions and small-arms ammunition. Between January and April 2026, imports were limited to 20 tank carriages of gas oil destined for the Russian 474th Radio Engineering Centre near Baranavichy. No deliveries of weapons, ammunition or military train echelons were identified during that period.

Between September and December 2025, 157 railway carriages delivering ammunition were transported from Belarusian Armed Forces depots to Russia, including 122 mm and 152 mm artillery ammunition and munitions for multiple-launch rocket systems. The cargoes were delivered to Russian Ministry of Defence arsenals. No such shipments were recorded during January–April 2026. The largest category of exports from Belarus to Russia (219 carriages) consisted of products manufactured by the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant (MZKT) for Russian defence industry enterprises, as well as reinforced concrete railway sleepers produced by Spetszhelezobeton for facilities of the Russian Strategic Missile Forces and the 12th Main Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defence.

On 16 July, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya spoke at the Aspen Security Forum in the United States. She argued that the situation in Belarus should be viewed “not only as a humanitarian case”, but also as a security issue. According to Tsikhanouskaya, Lukashenka “serves Russia” and is ready to provide Belarusian territory for attacks against Ukraine and potentially NATO countries. She also claimed that infrastructure “which should not exist unless a country is preparing for escalation” was being built in Belarus.

On 16 July, the 35th Slavianski Bazaar in Vitsebsk International Festival of Arts opened in Belarus. The festival’s official concept and opening ceremony conveyed an explicitly peaceful and restrained message. In his speech, Lukashenka described Belarus as a “peaceful island”, said that art should serve peace, and urged cultural figures to “stay out of politics”. He also stressed that the festival had brought together “Belarusians, Poles, Russians, Ukrainians and representatives of dozens of other countries who came under the visa-free regime”, describing their presence as a symbol of peace and friendship among nations.

The more overtly pro-Russian segment of the regime’s propaganda gave the festival a markedly more confrontational political interpretation. Propagandist Ryhor Azaronak described Slavianski Bazaar as a “point of convergence” for the Slavic world, created in opposition to the “vulgar, malicious and destructive mass culture of the West”. On 17 July, he explicitly stated that “Slavianka is politics now as well — the most melodic kind”, portraying the festival as “the territory of genuine art” and “a sanctuary of Slavic culture” standing above the “falsehood of postmodernism”. State television also raised rhetorical questions about who “hates creativity” and “goes into hysterics over Slavianski Bazaar” (MLYN.BY publications and STV broadcasts of 15 and 17 July). More broadly, this ideological group — associated primarily with Azaronak and Vadzim Hihin — intensified its campaign against manifestations of Belarusian national culture. Its representatives openly claimed that their complaints had led to the closure of the LSTR, Honar and Ragna branded shops, as well as the cancellation of this year’s Grunwald Fest. This activity likely reflects concerns within this faction about possible evolution of the policies of the Lukashenka regime.

On 14 July, during a visit to Vitsebsk Region, Lukashenka endorsed the organised recruitment of Uzbek workers to address labour shortages. He said enterprises should determine their own staffing needs and assume responsibility for workers, adding that migrants should be invited “together with their families”. More than 200 Uzbek citizens had already arrived in the region, although some soon complained of low pay, poor working conditions and mistreatment.

Along Belarus’s borders, the main focus is shifting towards migration pressure on Latvia and the resulting increase in secondary migration into Lithuania. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda and Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs described the possible restoration of border controls between Lithuania and Latvia as a “capitulation”, instead advocating stronger protection of the EU’s external border, readmission measures and additional support for Latvia. Between 6 and 16 July, Latvia recorded 848 illegal border crossing attempts, compared with just 46 on the Polish border.

On 16 July, Russia and Ukraine conducted another exchange of the bodies of fallen soldiers through Belarus. At the Novaya Huta border crossing, Russia transferred 501 bodies to Ukraine, while the Ukrainian side returned 31 bodies to Russia.

On 15 July, the General Court of the European Union dismissed an action brought by Klaipėda-based company Birių Krovinių Terminalas challenging the restrictions that halted the transit of Belarusian potash fertilisers through Lithuania. The Court found that some claims had been filed after the deadline, while others were inadmissible or fell outside its jurisdiction. As a result, the company failed to secure a review of the EU sanctions regime or its official interpretation regarding the transit of Belarusian potash. The ruling leaves unchanged the current application of the sanctions regime, under which such transit through Lithuania remains prohibited. Birių Krovinių Terminalas was ordered to reimburse the Council of the European Union’s legal costs in addition to its own, while Lithuania, which intervened in support of the Council, will bear its own costs.

According to Belstat, Belarus’s GDP grew by 1.5% year-on-year in January–June 2026. Growth accelerated from 0.9% recorded in January–May but remained below the official annual target of 2.8%. Industrial output declined by 0.7% during the first half of the year, while fixed capital investment increased by 4.1% and retail turnover by 7.2%.

The median gross monthly salary in May reached BYN 2,314.9 (approximately EUR 700), an increase of BYN 300.9 (approximately EUR 91) compared with a year earlier. The average gross monthly salary stood at BYN 3,003.5 (approximately EUR 910). Consequently, half of all employees earned less than EUR 700 before tax.

On 17 July, the Council of Ministers and the National Bank approved procedures for the remote identification of clients of crypto banks. Identity verification may be carried out before services are provided or after changes to a client’s personal data using the interbank identification system, the unified state identification system, biometric identity documents or remote biometric verification. Crypto banks will be required to verify the authenticity of documents and the client’s presence, maintain electronic client records, and comply with data protection, cybersecurity and anti-money laundering requirements. The authorities expect the new procedures to expand remote financial services, including for individuals who are not residents of the Hi-Tech Park.

On 13 July, Belarusian human rights defenders published a statement recognising seven more people as political prisoners. On 17 July, Belarusian human rights organisations recognised ten more people as political prisoners. They demanded the immediate release of these people, as well as all other political prisoners, and an end to political repression in Belarus. As of 17 July, according to “Viasna” Human Rights Centre, 868 people have the status of political prisoners.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs added 22 more people to the “List of citizens of the Republic of Belarus, foreign citizens or stateless persons involved in extremist activities”. Among those included in the list is Russian citizen Vladimir Korchevny. According to the Ministry, he was convicted by the Homel Regional Court on charges of discrediting Belarus, insulting Aliaksandr Lukashenka and calling for actions aimed at harming the national security of the Republic of Belarus. It is indicated in the list that Korchevny is serving his sentence. There are now 6,794 names on the list.

There are 57 people of retirement and pre-retirement age in penal colonies in Belarus, “Viasna” Human Rights Centre reported. 42 of them have reached retirement age, including 24 men and 18 women. Most of them are over 60 years old; nine people are over 70 years old. Many have serious health problems. Another ten people under the age of 60 are women who are eligible for an old-age pension, as well as former law enforcement officers who receive a retirement pension for years of service. There are 15 male political prisoners of pre-retirement age (from 60 to 62 years old).

It became known that a new criminal case was initiated against former political prisoner Pavel Mazheika in May 2026. According to human rights defenders, he is most likely charged with “facilitating extremist activities”. Mazheika said that he was not aware of what he was accused of this time. He knew, however, about “dozens of so-called ‘procedural actions’” against his relatives, family members and acquaintances: searches, interrogations, including informal conversations. As he noted, during the searches, the security forces “were looking for him” and “surprised that they could not find him”. Initially, Mazheika was detained on 30 August 2022 and in July 2023 was sentenced to six years of imprisonment in a high-security colony on the charge of “facilitating extremist activities”. According to investigators, he had allegedly passed on to “unidentified persons” information received from Yulia Yurhilevich, regarding the cancellation of her lawyer’s licence and expulsion from the Hrodna Regional Bar Association, as well as information about the consideration by the Minsk City Court of a criminal case against artist Ales Pushkin and his sentencing, for posting it on the Belsat website. In September 2025, the Belarusian authorities released 52 political prisoners, including Mazheika. All of them were expelled to Lithuania.

Yury Hrytsko, a rural Catholic priest, was arrested in Dziarechyn. The local authorities called him on 9 July and told him to attend the village council. When he arrived there, the police arrested him and took him to a police station. The next day, Hrytsko was sentenced to 15 days of administrative arrest. The charge is not known yet.

Recently, the shops and brands Honar, LSTR Azenne and Ragna have stopped working in Belarus. They announced the termination of their activities almost simultaneously, without giving any reasons. According to “Viasna” Human Rights Centre, the owner of one of the shops was detained by security forces and interrogated about his social media and contacts. He was demanded to close the business and then released. “This is sad and disturbing information, indicating that the attack on Belarusian culture continues in all its manifestations. Belarusian bookstores and publishing houses continue to be destroyed, Belarusian books are constantly being added to “extremist” lists — they are practically banned on the territory of Belarus. Now it comes to national clothing and applied art. This is another step towards the Russification of Belarus, which is being carried out by the Belarusian authorities,” commented Nobel Peace Prize laureate and the head of “Viasna” Ales Bialiatski.

The Minsk apartment of Ihar Stankevich, a well-known researcher of Stalin’s repressions in the Orsha region, was searched. The search was conducted by 5-6 people, including KGB officers. At the same time, Stankevich’s acquaintances were interrogated regarding the Nacyja Lidarau (Nation of Leaders) initiative, which conducts online courses in various fields, from civic activism to compiling their own pedigree. Later, Stankevich learned that apartments of at least three more people had been searched in Minsk, and KGB officers had visited not only their apartments but also the apartments of their relatives or loved ones. In all cases they were interested in the individuals’ involvement in the Nacyja Lidarau initiative. In October 2024, the “extremist formation ‘Order’” appeared on the list of “extremist formations” on the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Several courtyard chats were mentioned there, while the Nacyja Lidarau website, telegram channel, telegram chat, YouTube channel, as well as Facebook and Instagram pages were mentioned in the relevant KGB decision as Internet resources through which “extremist activities” were allegedly carried out.

Political prisoner Andrei Budai was sentenced to another year and a half of imprisonment on charges of malicious disobedience to the colony administration. After the verdict was announced, he was transferred to the colony in Valkavysk. In 2024, Budai was already tried under this charge. The court then sentenced him to two years of imprisonment. In September 2022, he was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment and a fine of 500 basic units (6,427 USD) in the Busly Laciac case.

Aliaksandr Yazhevski, a 58-year-old resident of Mazyr, was convicted on charges of attempted high treason. The verdict was passed by the Mahileu Regional Court. The circumstances and term of the punishment are unknown, but it is known that the sanction for this charge provides only for imprisonment, with the minimum term of seven years. Human rights defenders suggest that the criminal prosecution may be related to Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.

Yury Trashchynski, a former Belteleradiocompany sound engineer, was sentenced to two and a half years of imprisonment and fined 500 basic units (22,500 rubles, or approximately 6,900 Euro) on charges of “participating in an extremist formation”. He was charged with collaborating with independent Belarusian Radio Raciya, which the KGB recognised as an “extremist formation” in January 2024. The verdict was announced by the Homel Regional Court on 4 May 2026. On 7 July, the Supreme Court upheld the verdict, rejecting Trashchynski’s appeal. The Ministry of Internal Affairs added Trashchynski to the list of persons “involved in extremist activities”. According to the list, he is already serving his sentence. Trashchynski was detained on 15 November 2025 after returning from Poland to Minsk. At first, he was arrested for 15 days in an administrative case, but then a criminal case was initiated against him. Human rigths defenders regularly document arrests at the border when Belarusians travel from European states to Belarus. Administrative arrests are often followed by the opening of a criminal case.

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Best regards, iSANS team