Belarus does not intend to take part in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but is sending five battalion tactical units to the borders to replace its rotating forces already stationed there, the Chief of the country’s Defence General Staff, Viktor Gulevic, stated.

“I want to emphasize that the transfer of troops has nothing to do with any preparation or with the participation of Belarusian soldiers in special military operations on Ukrainian territory,” Gulevic said. On Friday, Alexei Danilov, a senior Ukrainian security official, warned Belarus not to send troops to Ukraine, saying that Ukraine was showing restraint against Belarus despite the fact that the country’s soil is being used as a take-off area for Russian aircraft. However, he warned that if a (Belarusian) soldier crosses the border into Ukraine, Ukrainian forces would retaliate.

In addition, the Ukrainian Air Force Command announced that Russian fighters bombed, as an act of provocation, the settlement of Kopani in Belarus near the border with Ukraine, after entering the airspace of Ukraine in an attempt to involve Belarus in the Russian war against Ukraine.

With information from: AMNA

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