Belarus to deploy special forces to Ukrainian border

Belarusian military officials announced on Tuesday that the armed forces will deploy special operations troops to three areas near the country’s southern border with Ukraine, just days after the country’s controversial leader Alexander Lukashenko lauded the role of Russian-made missiles in boosting the country’s defenses.

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin first launched his invasion of Ukraine, Belarus has said that it will not send troops to fight along side the Kremlin’s invading forces. However, Moscow’s loyal ally has allowed Russia to use its territory as a launchpad, facilitating the movement of thousands of troops across the border when Russian forces first entered Ukraine on Feb. 24.

Furthermore, rumors have long claimed that Belarus could join Putin’s forces at any moment.

Ukrainian officials warned in March, for example, that Belarusian troops might join Russian’s invasion force and that troops could cross the border within hours.

The alert was issued by the Ukrainian government’s Center for Strategic Communications just hours after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko traveled to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the New York Post reported.

Nevertheless, Franak Viačorka, an adviser to exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, has said that “there is a high degree of demoralization” among both officers and conscripts, adding that many “are fleeing the country’s borders en masse to any destination possible.”

“We have seen growing pressure from commanders of military units not to intervene in the fighting in Ukraine. There are officers who took sick leave and others who have asked to end their contracts with the military,” he added.

In recent weeks, however, officials in Minsk have complained about NATO’s amassing of troops and military hardware along its borders. Noting increased military activity along the borders of member nations Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, Belarusian armed forces have increased the amount and intensity of its own military exercises along the border region – spurring concerns that Lukashenko might join Putin in the coming weeks.

"The United States and its allies continue to build up their military presence on the state borders of the Republic of Belarus," Chief of General Staff Viktor Gulevich said. "The established grouping has more than doubled in the past six months in quantity and quality."

The military chief added that Belarus is deploying air defenses, artillery and missile units for drills in the country’s western region. Some of the missiles were likely produced in Belarus thanks to a deal reached with Putin meant to help Belarus produce missiles similar to Russia’s infamous Iskander missiles, often used against Ukrainian positions.

"We are realists, we understand that we will not be able to defeat NATO. But we can cause damage, especially to those territories from which we will be attacked," Gulevich noted.