Belarus amasses military and ex‑Wagner fighters near Ukraine border

According to information from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Belarus is amassing military equipment near the border with Ukraine. Former members of the Wagner Group are also said to be arriving there. These actions are being conducted under the pretense of exercises. Ukraine is urging Minsk not to make a "tragic mistake for its own country."

According to information from the Ukrainian MFA, Belarus is gathering military equipment in the Homel region in the southeastern part of the country. Among the soldiers, former members of the Wagner Group, some of whom arrived in Belarus after the group's dissolution, have also been seen.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs notes that the actions of the Belarusian military are merely pretending to be exercises, but their goal is entirely different. The Belarusian Armed Forces are concentrating a "considerable number of personnel, especially Special Operations Forces, weapons and military equipment, including tanks, artillery, anti-aircraft missiles, anti-aircraft equipment, and engineering equipment, in the Homel region."

According to Kyiv, such actions threaten national and global security. The Ukrainians point out that the Chernobyl power plant is located nearby, although it is no longer operational and is currently being decommissioned.

We call on the authorities of Belarus not to make tragic mistakes for their own country under Moscow's pressure and to cease hostile activities and withdraw troops from the state border of Ukraine to an appropriate distance - says the Ukrainian MFA.

The Ukrainians remind that they have no intention of conducting hostile actions against the Belarusian people. Kyiv announced an immediate response in case of border violations. Let us recall that a few days ago, Alexander Lukashenko announced the redeployment of some Belarusian troops to the border with Ukraine. He claimed that Ukraine is also amassing significant forces in the region.

Belarus's amassing of armed forces near the border with Ukraine seems related to the successes of the Ukrainian army in the Kursk region. Under pressure from Putin, Lukashenko is shifting his troops to continuously pretend a possible opening of another front. This is intended to divert part of the forces commanded by Kyiv to the border with Belarus.