Zelensky gives Lukashenko one-week ultimatum to remove military equipment
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demands that Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko remove equipment used to target Ukraine within a week, or Ukrainian forces will do it themselves.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed skepticism about Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko's claims that he does not want to be drawn into the war. Zelensky stated that Russia has been trying to involve Belarus in the conflict since the first days of the full-scale invasion. He reminded that many missiles launched at the start of the invasion came from Belarusian territory.
Zelensky does not believe Lukashenko's assertion that he was not in control and that only Russia acted. He pointed out that retransmitters are located on Belarusian towers, and equipment near two Ukrainian border regions is used to correct fire on Ukrainian civilians. If Lukashenko truly does not want to participate in the war, he should remove that equipment.
Zelensky announced he is giving Lukashenko one week to do so. He justified the deadline by noting that every day, civilians are killed and children wounded because of this equipment. If Lukashenko fails to comply, Ukrainian forces will take action themselves.
Recently, Lukashenko stated he does not want war but is preparing for its start. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, while the war overall has been ongoing since 2014, when Russia occupied Crimea and began hostilities in Donbas.
