Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has warned Ukraine not to try to draw his country into the war, saying any such move would change the conflict "instantly".
Speaking on Thursday, Lukashenko said Ukrainian representatives had recently travelled to Minsk, where he delivered a blunt message for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
"I told them bluntly: 'Guys, tell your president: if he thinks he can talk to us like that — and drag us into a war to boot - then he needs to understand that the nature of the war would change instantly,'" Lukashenko said.
He added that Belarus had no wish to fight its neighbour.
"We received a reply: the president and his team understand this. So, let's reach an agreement, guys. We need to reach a substantive agreement."
Kyiv did not immediately respond to his remarks.
The exchange comes as tensions between the two countries continue to rise. Zelenskyy has repeatedly claimed Russia wants Belarus to play a bigger role in the war, accusing Minsk of allowing its territory to support Russian drone attacks.
Last week, the Ukrainian leader threatened to disable signal relay stations in Belarus that he said were helping guide Russian drones. On Wednesday, he said the stations had stopped working, although there was no independent confirmation.
After meeting his foreign intelligence chief, Oleh Luhovskyi, Zelenskyy also accused Belarus of improving roads near the border and expanding fuel and ammunition storage sites.
"Belarus knows what steps are needed on its part for peace," he wrote on Telegram. "The development of border infrastructure for aggression from Belarus must be stopped."
The Kremlin dismissed a report by The Wall Street Journal that Russia was pressuring Belarus to launch more attacks on Ukraine or risk losing financial support.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the report "does not correspond to reality" and described Belarus as "our closest ally".
Belarusian Defence Minister Viktor Khrenin blamed the West for rising tensions, saying NATO was strengthening forces near Belarus' borders and trying to expand the conflict.
"Today, we are acutely aware of a blatant attempt to drag Belarus into the war," he said.
Although Lukashenko has not sent Belarusian troops into Ukraine, he allowed Russia to use Belarus as a launchpad for its full-scale invasion in 2022.
Belarus also hosts Russian tactical nuclear weapons, carries out regular joint military drills and allows Moscow to use its military bases and training grounds.
Russia also relies on Belarus in other ways. Belarus' two major oil refineries process Russian crude and supply fuel back to Russia, a link that has become more important as Ukrainian strikes have disrupted refineries inside Russia.
The U.S. military announced that it has completed a new wave of strikes against Iranian military targets under U.S. President Donald Trump's orders. T...
Aid organisations in Afghanistan are struggling to keep women in work as Taliban restrictions force them to spend more on male guardians, transport an...
The Trump administration is pressing ahead with new immigration rules that will impose fixed time limits on visas for foreign students, cultural excha...
The U.S. military announced that it has completed a new wave of strikes against Iranian military targets under U.S. President Donald Trump's orders. The operation targeted command centres, air defence systems, missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance sites across multiple locations.
The Trump administration is pressing ahead with new immigration rules that will impose fixed time limits on visas for foreign students, cultural exchange visitors and journalists, tightening requirements for thousands of people who study and work in the U.S.
A Russian Soyuz spacecraft carrying two Russian cosmonauts and one U.S. astronaut successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday, highlighting continued U.S.-Russian cooperation in space despite wider geopolitical tensions.
Slovak President Peter Pellegrini says cooperation with Azerbaijan is moving beyond formal diplomacy, with new opportunities emerging in energy, defence, cybersecurity, trade and education.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the reimposition of a U.S. naval blockade on all Iranian ports and warned that power plants and bridges could be targeted next week unless Tehran returns to negotiations.
The United States carried out a third consecutive night of airstrikes against Iran, targeting military capabilities around the Strait of Hormuz as Donald Trump announced the reinstatement of a blockade on Iranian shipping and proposed a 20% fee on cargo passing through the strategic waterway.
The U.S. military announced that it has completed a new wave of strikes against Iranian military targets under U.S. President Donald Trump's orders. The operation targeted command centres, air defence systems, missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance sites across multiple locations.
The death toll from the fire at a live music pub in Bangkok has climbed to 32 after two more victims died from their injuries, according to Thailand's Police Hospital.
Ukraine and Russia exchanged fresh attacks on Tuesday, with Kyiv targeting shipping and energy infrastructure inside Russia while Moscow launched another large-scale missile and drone assault on Ukrainian cities.
The Trump administration is pressing ahead with new immigration rules that will impose fixed time limits on visas for foreign students, cultural exchange visitors and journalists, tightening requirements for thousands of people who study and work in the U.S.
Keir Starmer has reaffirmed that the UK's "unwavering" support for Ukraine will continue, during his final visit to the country as Prime Minister.
Two British hackers who carried out a cyberattack on Transport for London (TfL) that cost the transport authority £29 million to remediate have been jailed for a total of 11 years.
At least 11 people have been killed and 19 injured in a fire at an orphanage on the outskirts of the Algerian capital, state media reported. The blaze broke out early on Thursday at the institution in the eastern suburbs of Algiers.
A woman whose husband was sucked out of the window of a plane during a Ryanair flight has recounted pulling her husband to safety. Serbian couple Svetlana Maksimovic and Ljubisa Karovic had just settled into a flight with the airline last week, when a loud bang pierced the hum of engines.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment