Ukraine’s defense minister comments on likelihood of Russian offensive from Belarus this winter

Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov addressed the issue on the air of a national telethon, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"They (the Russian Federation - ed.) launched an attack from Belarus on Kyiv through Chernobyl. This risk, of course, remains. And when we talk about the winter period – from January to April, in this corridor – we first of all assess readiness of the Russians through their mobilization reserve to create a potential strike group. The fact that the Belarusian armed forces will be involved in this endeavor is another question. The territory of Belarus can be used as a target for our attack if the Russians form their strike group there. As of today, no such strike group has been formed," Reznikov said.

According to the defense chief, the enemy needs time to create it.

As reported, on December 19, Belarus’s Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in Minsk.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, commenting on the meeting, noted that Putin continues to encourage Lukashenko to provide maximum support for the Russian armed forces.