Belarus has accused neighbors Ukraine of committing airspace violations through the use of drones as Ukrainian troops moved deeper into Russia’s Kursk region.
In response Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko sent additional armed forces to the border to reinforce defenses.
Belarus claims that several Ukrainian drones entered its airspace on August 9, 2024, and were intercepted by air defenses.
President Lukashenko said the incident was a “provocation” and that “general staff of Belarus has been ordered to take relevant measures to ensure the security of the state”.
“Ukrainians show in this way that they are not ready for peace and continue to escalate this tension,” Lukashenko said.
Separately, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said in a statement that “military units of special operations forces, ground troops and rocket forces” were being moved to designated areas.
On August 10, 2024, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry summoned Ukraine’s Charge d’Affaires to ensure such incidents don’t reoccur.
“The Ukrainian diplomat was warned that in case of repetition of such provocations Belarus reserves the right to take retaliatory steps to protect its territory,” and “may question the necessity of the continued presence of the Ukrainian diplomatic mission in Minsk,” the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said.
Ukraine has not publicly commentated on the incident.