New reports indicate that Russian ally Belarus may be organizing and preparing to send forces into Ukraine.
Belarusian forces appear to be mustering their troops to support Russia in its invasion of Ukraine and sending special forces to assist in the capturing of Kyiv. Their deployment would mark a significant shift in Belarus’s relationship with the war in Ukraine.
Belarusian forces are showing a “readiness to maybe participate directly” in Russia’s invasion, “in addition to allowing Russians to use their territory as well as letting them cross the border,” a Ukrainian government official told CNN. These reports appear to be corroborated by reports covered by the Washington Post and Kyiv Independent.
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Belarusian opposition journalists had released reports to diplomats on Sunday alleging that Belarus special forces had been observed boarding planes and preparing for deployment in or near Kyiv. While the information has yet to be verified, Belarus opposition media has launched a campaign to discourage Belarusian involvement.
This campaign featured former high-ranking Belarusian airborne Cmdr. Valeriy Sakhashik, reported the Independent, who urged Belarusian paratroopers not to obey any orders that would throw the country into a war with Ukraine.
The claims were corroborated by an unnamed U.S. official, who told the Washington Post on Sunday that Belarus was preparing to send forces as early as Monday to support Putin.
There has also been evidence of Belarusian forces being put on alert, according to Ukrainian presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday that he had recently called Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko, who told him that he would not get involved in Putin’s war. Lukashenko even offered to have Russian and Ukrainian officials meet on Belarus’s border to begin peace negotiations. While Zelensky was unconvinced the talks would succeed, he still decided to move forward. The two delegations began negotiations on Monday morning.
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Lukashenko said last week that Belarusian forces would get involved if it became necessary. “Our troops are not participating in any way in this operation. We’re not going to justify ourselves here about our participation or non-participation in this conflict. I repeat once again. Our troops are not there, but if it becomes necessary, if Belarus and Russia need them, they will be there,” the dictator said in footage posted by Belarusian state media.
Others, such as former Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk, believe that Lukashenko is highly indebted to Putin and would not be able to say no to the Russian president.
Russia used Belarus as a staging area for troops prior to the invasion of Ukraine.
