Belarus and Russia merge weapons companies

WIRE:02/11/2000 13:21:00 ET

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MINSK, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Russia and Belarus, planning a union of their countries, signed an agreement on Friday to set up an industrial group merging their weapons companies. Belarus government spokesman Ivan Znatkevich told Reuters that the document was signed by Belarus Deputy Prime Minister Leonid Kozik and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov. "Our military companies will work together, we will reform our armies together and produce and sell weapons together," Klebanov told Belarussian television before the signing. Znatkevich said 17 Russian and two Belarussian military companies, which specialise in air defence equipment, would form a group called Oboronitelnye Sistemy (Defence Systems). "Other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States may also join this group," he said, referring to the loose union of 12 former Soviet states. Russian officials publicly back the merger of the two countries but take a cautious line when it comes to saying exactly what the new state will look like. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said last week that the two countries would form a joint military force of hundreds of thousands to defend their western frontier from NATO. Belarus also wants to merge the two states' air defence systems. Copyright )2000 ABC News Internet Ventures

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