During the Zapad-2025 exercises, which concluded today, September 16, the Shafran laser counter-drone system was demonstrated, a development that only became publicly known this past spring.
According to russian state media, the system was shown at the Borisovsky training ground north of Minsk. The event appeared to be more of a staged performance for international observers and television cameras than a real exercise, as Belarusian and russian troops enacted a theatrical scenario of liberating a village captured by a mock enemy.
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Alongside traditional displays, such as strikes by frontline bombers dropping unguided bombs from very low altitudes, the drills also included elements meant to imitate modern warfare. These involved active drone use, assault groups on motorcycles, and so-called Ulan all-terrain vehicles, improvised on the basis of civilian Niva cars.
As for the Shafran unit itself, the system was presented as being capable of destroying small enemy UAVs at a distance of up to one kilometer. Its appearance at these drills, however, again highlighted the staged nature of the exercise, since there is only one experimental prototype. Earlier in September, the Ministry of Defense of Belarus had reported that the system was still undergoing testing.
All indications suggest that the Shafran system is not an original Belarusian product but rather a repackaged Chinese design. This would explain the speed of its so-called development, as the LEMT enterprise has officially been working on it for less than a year.
Its likely basis is Chinese Silent Hunter system, which russia has also attempted to pass off as its own under the name Kochevnik. While certain details, such as the combat module's form factor and the use of the AESA radar, might be coincidental, other elements strongly point to a direct copy.
In particular, Belarus publicly demonstrated its laser destroying a small drone of the Mavic type. Meanwhile, russian media had already shown the Silent Hunter system's interface, allowing comparisons. The similarities are striking: both systems share the same combat interface layout, differing only in software versions, as well as an identical camera angle fixed at 45 degrees.
This evidence makes it far more plausible that Belarusian Shafran system is simply a Chinese system under another name. China openly exports such technology, with the Silent Hunter system already appearing in Iran. Yet real operational use, such as by Saudi Arabia, has revealed its poor effectiveness, often requiring 15–30 minutes to take down a single drone.
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