The authorities of Belarus can conduct preparations to participate in the war against Ukraine and take certain steps for this. Oleksiy Gromov, deputy head of the Main Operational Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, stated this at a briefing.
According to him, in particular, Belarus is recruiting for ground defense units, and the House of Representatives of the state has adopted a bill on the introduction of the death penalty for treason for military personnel and officials.
"It is possible that such actions of the Lukashenka regime are one of the steps in preparation for participation in the war against Ukraine," Gromov said.
He also reported that the State Border and Border Committee has extended until March 1, 2023 restrictions on the entry and stay of citizens in the border zone in the areas of the Gomel region bordering the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions of Ukraine.
According to the General Staff, last week in the border territories of the Brest region they continued to campaign for the entry of volunteers into the ground defense units.
"During the talks, the candidates are informed that in the event of martial law being introduced in the country, they will be issued with weapons and ammunition, and their main task will be the protection and defense of communities as part of the formed units of territorial defense," Gromov said.
At the same time, he stated that at the moment the probability of an offensive from the territory of Belarus remains low.
