Belarus will join forces with Russia and take part in its invasion of Ukraine ‘within hours’, according to reports in Kyiv.
It comes after Ukrainian officials rejected Belarus as a venue for potential peace talks, because its neighbour had allowed its territory to be used by Russian troops as a staging ground for the invasion.
READ ALSO: Court Orders Forfeiture Of ex-Gov. Yari Properties To FG
Yesterday saw Belarus formally renounce its non-nuclear and neutral status – allowing Russia to place nuclear weapons on its territory, reports the Mirror.
Now, The Kyiv Independent reports that “Vladimir Putin is about to pull his Belarusian ally, dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko into his war of occupation”.
“Multiple sources in Belarus say the decision has been made — and as soon as on Feb. 28 at 5 a.m. local time, the first Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft is very likely to take off carrying Belarusian paratroopers to be deployed against Ukraine,” adds the English speaking website.
On twitter, a Belarusian lieutenant colonel has reportedly urged troops to disobey any orders to invade Ukraine.
The video and partial translation was shared by Franak Viačorka, senior advisor to Belarusian human rights activist Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
READ ALSO: Russia-Ukraine Crisis: Zelenskyy’s Address In Full
Belarusian lieutenant colonel addressed the military. "Our boys are now sitting in the woods of Belarus, probably preparing to attack Ukraine. Some won't come home alive. This is not our war. Find a way not to follow criminal orders. Sometimes saying "no" takes the most courage." pic.twitter.com/1RxkdlLdJD
— Franak Viačorka (@franakviacorka) February 27, 2022
It comes after President Lukashenko, who has edged even closer to Russia amid crippling Western sanctions over his crackdown on domestic protests, said he is confident that Belarusians will support a set of constitutional amendments that would allow him to stay in power until 2035.
The revised main law also sheds Belarus’s neutral status, opening the way for stronger military co-operation with Russia, which deployed forces to Belarusian territory under the pretext of military drills and then sent them rolling into Ukraine as part of the invasion that began on Thursday.
Some of those forces quickly closed in on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, located just 75 kilometres (less than 50 miles) south of the border.
In a video message on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rebuked Belarusians for allowing their country to be used as a staging ground for the Russian invasion, adding that Ukrainian cities are facing an attack on a scale unseen since the Second World War when Belarus and Ukraine faced a Nazi invasion as parts of the Soviet Union.
“But you aren’t on the same side with us in the war that is going on now,” Mr Zelensky said in Russian, which is widely spoken in Belarus.
“The Russian military is launching missiles at Ukraine from your territory. From your territory they are killing our children, they are destroying our homes and trying to blow up everything that has been built for decades.”
In an emotional speech, the Ukrainian leader questioned how Belarusians will be able “to look into the eyes of your children, into the eyes of each other”.
“We are your neighbours. Be Belarus, not Russia,” he said.
(C)ControlTV2022.
