Zelensky gives Belarus one week to remove Russian drone-relay equipment near border
Ukraine put a one-week clock on Belarus. President Zelensky says relay stations on Belarusian border towers help guide Russian drone strikes, and gave Minsk a week to remove them or Ukraine will act itself.
Ukraine has issued a pointed deadline to neighboring Belarus. Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv alongside the visiting president of Honduras, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that relay equipment installed on communication towers in Belarusian regions near the border is being used to help guide Russian drone strikes against Ukraine. His warning was specific: Minsk has one week to remove or switch off the equipment, or Ukraine will act to do so itself. The statement focuses on the signaling and relay systems linked to Russian strike operations, rather than a broad threat against Belarus. Zelensky framed the move as a response to a contradiction he sees in Minsk's position. Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has repeatedly said he does not want his country drawn into the war, yet Ukraine points to the continued role Belarusian territory plays in supporting Russia's military campaign. The ultimatum raises the stakes along a border that has stayed mostly quiet for direct confrontation, even as Belarus has served as a staging area for Russian forces since 2022.