Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha confirmed receipt of a note from the Belarusian side regarding visits to the border zone and drew attention to Minsk’s reference to already invalid documents, since Kyiv has withdrawn from documents both within the CIS and with Belarus.
The minister said this when answering a question from an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent regarding potential threats from Belarus.
"I will tell you that we do not expect. We do not expect their participation in the war. We proceed from the premise that they will not let themselves be dragged by Russia into this war, that they will avoid this involvement and provocation, because Ukraine will mirror," he said during a conversation with the media on Friday.
According to Sybiha, the regime of Alexander Lukashenko understands and realizes this.
"Yesterday, for example, we received a note from the Belarusian side through our embassy in Minsk stating that they propose a certain regime of visits in the border zone, referring to already invalid documents. Ukraine has withdrawn from documents both within the CIS and with Belarus. That is, such proposals also need to be read correctly. Why exactly now? Why exactly the border area? What does this mean?" the head of the ministry noted.
He added that the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine has already responded officially expressing a lack of interest in such proposals.
The Foreign Minister separate stressed that for their part, all relevant services, including intelligence, are closely monitoring the development of the situation on the territory of Belarus in the context of threats to Ukraine.
"This includes changes in legislation, changes in the structure of military units, changes in the quantitative parameters of the military presence along the Ukrainian border. This also includes planned joint activities with Russians, and the use of Belarusian infrastructure for attacks on Ukraine," Sybiha said.
He stressed again that the President of Ukraine officially warned about this, and the Belarusian side clearly realizes that such warnings are not empty.
"If it is voiced by the President of Ukraine, then of course we expect a reaction, and not only in this bloc of, let’s say, threats that arise. I am speaking now about repeaters," Sybiha stated.
The day before, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus published a statement where it put forward a proposal addressed to Ukraine "to organize a seasonal simplified border crossing for residents of border communities so that they can gather wild berries and mushrooms in the border areas of Belarus."
"A note with relevant proposals was handed to the Chargé d’Affaires of Ukraine. We emphasize: this is not a political gesture, but a rational proposal in the interests of ordinary people to preserve their habitual way of life without artificial barriers. We are waiting for an answer," the Belarusian foreign ministry reported on the X social network on Thursday.
On June 19, Zelenskyy reported that repeaters used by Russians to guide strikes are located on the territory of Belarus along the border with Ukraine. The President of Ukraine issued an ultimatum to Minsk to dismantle or turn off the equipment within a week. Otherwise, Ukraine will do it independently.
On June 24, the President of Ukraine reported that the repeaters for correcting strikes of Russian drones on Ukraine, located in Belarus, stopped operating.
President Zelenskyy also reported that Belarus is carrying out work on its territory under the influence of Russia to expand the capabilities of aggression against Ukraine, and has already received calls from Ukraine to stop this.
