Russia denies pressuring Belarus to widen Ukraine conflict; Minsk blames West

Its success has caused fuel shortages and disrupted army supply lines, stalling Moscow’s invasion of its neighbor after more than four years of fighting and rattling Russian officials.

In 2022, Russia used Belarusian territory to invade Kyiv quickly.

Though Belarus is Russia’s closest ally and allowed Russia to use Belarusian territory as a staging ground from which to launch its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Lukashenko has in recent months toned down his rhetoric against the Ukrainian leader, appearing to adopt a more measured tone.

He ordered strikes early in the year against four signal relay stations in Belarus that, he says, are being used by Russia to direct drone attacks on Ukraine.