On Friday, June 19, Ukrainian President Zelensky urged Belarus to dismantle the equipment used by Russian forces within the country to attack Ukraine within a week, or else Ukraine will take action.
According to Reuters, Zelensky mentioned that there are two signal relay stations in Belarus bordering Ukraine. These facilities provide navigation for Russian military attacks on Ukrainian civilians.
During a press conference in Kyiv, Zelensky stated, “Just saying (Lukashenko) doesn’t want to get involved in the war, what’s the point? He needs to withdraw this equipment, shut them down. I believe a week is enough for him to do this.”
“If he doesn’t do so, we will do it for him,” Zelensky added.
At the same time, Zelensky talked about Belarus’s oil industry, stating that it has become a major supply source for Moscow, and Lukashenko has the ability to end this supply.
He said, “Today, he is a major supplier to the Russian army, or one of the major suppliers. It is Lukashenko, specifically Belarus. Can this be stopped? I’m sure it is within his jurisdiction, and he is the one controlling everything.”
Over the past four years of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Ukraine has been strengthening its crackdown on the Russian oil industry as one of the measures to combat Russia’s military capabilities.
In recent months, Zelensky has warned that Russia plans to deepen Minsk’s involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war. Russian forces previously used Belarusian territory to launch attacks during the initial invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Furthermore, Belarus has long been criticized by Western countries for its poor human rights record, including the detention of hundreds of opposition figures.
Lukashenko has been releasing these opposition political prisoners gradually as one of the steps to improve relations with the United States.
Belarus’s leading opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya stated that Zelensky’s frank remarks are the best way to deal with Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994.
Tsikhanouskaya said in a statement, “Ukraine today has shown the world how to deal with dictators – only from a position of strength. And Ukraine already has that strength.”
The statement also mentioned, “If Lukashenko truly wants peace, he must prove it through actions, not just words. He must stop all support for Russia’s aggression, end Belarus’s involvement in the war, and cease being a tool for the Kremlin. He must release political prisoners and engage in a genuine dialogue with the Belarusian people.”
Tsikhanouskaya lost to Lukashenko in the 2020 Belarusian presidential election and has been in exile ever since. Lukashenko has been accused of election fraud by the opposition and Western countries. Following the election, he detained thousands of protesters.
Last month, Lukashenko denied that Minsk would be further involved in the Russia-Ukraine war but stated that if aggressed upon, Belarus would defend jointly with Russia.
This week, Lukashenko said in an interview with Al Arabiya that Ukraine does not need to worry about Belarus’s threats and both sides must make concessions to end the war.
On June 17, Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out a deadly drone attack targeting a bus carrying Belarusian children passing through Russia. The incident resulted in one fatality and eight injuries, including six children. However, Kyiv denied any involvement in the event.
Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, Minsk has been Moscow’s staunchest supporter. Russian drones have flown over Belarusian airspace during attacks on Ukraine. Minsk claimed to have deployed Russia’s Oreshnik medium-range hypersonic ballistic missile system. The two countries also conducted joint nuclear military exercises in May this year.