Zelensky warns Russia could step up attacks on western Ukraine from Belarus
Moscow is already using signal repeaters for drones in Belarus, the Ukrainian president said. He spoke of the neighboring country’s “direct involvement” in the war.
Archive image · Photo: Dati Bendo / European Union, 2025 / EC - Audiovisual Service / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russia could make greater use of Belarus for missile and drone attacks on western Ukraine. Russia is already deploying repeaters for drone signals in Belarus, he said on Saturday. Kremlin leader Putin needs the consent of Belarusian ruler Lukashenko to station more ballistic missiles there, he said. Zelensky spoke of “direct involvement of Belarus in this war,” which he said is also “very dangerous” for Belarus.
The spokesman for Ukraine’s border guard service, Andriy Demchenko, said equipment in Belarus relays or amplifies signals for Shahed and Geran drones heading into western Ukraine and the border region with Poland. Military intelligence chief Oleh Ivashchenko said in September that units of the 101st Missile Brigade with the Oreshnik intermediate-range system had been moved to Belarus. The claims could not be independently verified.
In recent days, Russian attacks hit the Volyn, Rivne and Lviv regions, causing deaths, injuries and widespread power outages. Zelensky announced plans to expand air defenses nationwide, distribute them according to the threat level and ramp up production of defense systems.