Russian dictator Vladimir Putin continues to try to drag Belarus into the war against Ukraine and has stepped up pressure on self-proclaimed Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko. This is reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing insider information.
WSJ sources claim that in 2026, the Kremlin took new steps to expand its war against Ukraine with the help of Belarus. The Russians want to use Belarusian territory to launch air strikes against Ukraine. The Kremlin expects that if Kyiv feels threatened by Minsk, it will redeploy additional military units from the Donetsk region, which Russian occupiers are trying to capture, to its northern state border. The Russians hope this will make it easier for them to fight in Donbas.
Moscow's main argument for pressuring Minsk is financial, writes WSJ. The Lukashenko regime is financially, as well as politically and militarily, largely dependent on Russia. The Kremlin is trying to use this circumstance to increase pressure on Lukashenko.
On Belarusian territory, there is military equipment that helps the Russian occupation army launch drone strikes on Ukraine (specifically, repeaters). Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly drawn attention to this.
On June 19, Zelensky demanded that Lukashenko remove Russian repeaters from areas bordering Ukraine, otherwise Kyiv would destroy them itself. The Ukrainian leader gave Minsk one week to do so.
Earlier, former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated that the Lukashenko regime is preparing for war against Ukraine.
Recall that Dialog.UA also reported that Alexander Lukashenko publicly apologized to Volodymyr Zelensky for his harsh personal remarks.
