Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, echoing rhetoric commonly used in Russian state propaganda, said such statements were “nothing more than attempts to further incite the continuation of the war and escalate tensions.”
At the same time, he said that “Belarus is our ally, and we have a Union State with Belarus,” while adding that Belarus is “a sovereign state.”
Earlier on May 18, Belarus’ Defense Ministry announced the start of joint drills with the Russian armed forces involving “the delivery of nuclear munitions and preparations for their use.”
The ministry said the exercises are aimed at “improving personnel training, testing readiness to carry out assigned tasks and organizing combat deployment from unplanned locations.”
Russia’s attempts to draw Belarus into the war against Ukraine
On May 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “specific activity” had been observed near the Belarusian border the previous day. He stressed that Ukraine was closely monitoring all developments.
On May 4, Ukrainian border guard spokesman Andriy Demchenko said Belarus was continuing to develop training grounds and logistics routes that Russia could use at any moment. He added that the current Russian troop grouping in Belarus was insufficient for an offensive against Ukraine.
On May 12, Alexander Lukashenko announced plans for targeted mobilization of certain military units to prepare for “possible combat operations.” He said Belarus remained “committed to peace” but that its army must be ready for war “if necessary.”
On May 15, Zelenskyy said in his nightly address that he had instructed Ukraine’s Defense Forces and security agencies to prepare a response plan to threats from Belarus. The plan is to be reviewed and approved by the commander-in-chief’s headquarters.
According to Zelenskyy, Ukraine would reinforce the Chernihiv-Kyiv direction, while Kyiv’s international partners had been informed about the situation and Russia’s attempts to draw Belarus into the war.
“There is now significant Russian activity — I mean in talks with Alexander Lukashenko. They want to pull Belarus much deeper into the war and launch additional aggressive operations from Belarusian territory — either against our Chernihiv-Kyiv direction or against one of the NATO countries neighboring Belarus,” Zelenskyy said.
The president stressed that Ukraine would continue defending its territory and citizens.
Earlier, he said Russia was considering operational plans both south and north of Belarusian territory — either against Ukraine’s Chernihiv-Kyiv direction or against a NATO member state — using Belarusian territory as a launch point.