UK intelligence explains whether Russian units being trained in Belarus will have combat effectiveness

The UK Ministry of Defense wrote about this on Twitter.

Analysts report that Russia's 2nd Guards Motorized Rifle Division has completed training in Belarus, which began in the fall of 2022. It is noted that the majority of these forces are now transferred to the Russian Federation before they are sent to war with Ukraine.

Intelligence notes that the 2nd Guards Motorized Rifle Division is part of the 1st Guards Tank Army, and the group suffered heavy casualties early in the full-scale invasion.

According to experts, now the division mainly consists of mobilized Russian soldiers who use old equipment taken from warehouses.

“Its combat effectiveness will likely be limited despite several weeks of training,” the report says. 

“There is a realistic possibility that other Russian units are being rotated into Belarus for similar training, and that Russia will continue this model to regenerate and prepare units to maintain its force in Ukraine,” the UK Ministry of Defense tweeted. 

• On January 25, UK intelligence informed why the Russian Federation refused to use the new T-14 Armata tanks: it happened because of their significant technical shortcomings.