KYIV: Ukraine is ramping up security measures in its regions bordering Belarus, Kyiv said on Thursday, after weeks of warning of a possible fresh attack from Russia's chief regional ally.
Kyiv has sounded the alarm that Russia may use Belarus - a springboard for its 2022 war of Ukraine - to stage a new offensive from the north, including towards the capital.
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) said its units and the army were "carrying out a comprehensive set of enhanced security measures in the northern regions of our country".
The measures - including stepped up checks and controls of individuals and properties - "will serve as an effective deterrent to any aggressive actions or operations by the enemy and its ally", the SBU said in a statement.
The Kremlin on Monday dismissed Ukraine's allegations it wanted to drag Belarus further into the war as "an attempt at further incitement".
Russia and Belarus are staging joint nuclear drills this week, involving thousands of troops, planes and strategic missile forces.
Amid the exercises, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that his country was "preparing responses to every possible course of enemy action - if the Russians do indeed dare to expand their aggression".
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday that his country posed "no threat to anyone", but that Belarus was ready to defend Russia in "every possible way", without elaborating.
Ukrainian military expert Sergiy Zgurets said that a fresh offensive from Belarus was unlikely, given the political risks for Minsk, and that Ukraine had substantially fortified its northern border since 2022.
"I would tend to see this more as pre-emptive informational measures on the Ukrainian side," he said.
During joint nuclear drills with Belarus on Thursday, President Vladimir Putin said Russia reserved the right to use nuclear weapons in "exceptional" circumstances, without mentioning Ukraine.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed since Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022, with the war having spiralled into Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II. - AFP
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