Headlines
Zelenskiy says Russia using Belarus territory to circumvent Ukrainian defences
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 26, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 26, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Zelenskiy claims Russia uses Belarus to bypass Ukraine's defences, risking Belarus's sovereignty. Ukraine plans new air attack strategies.
Dec 26 (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that Russia was using ordinary apartment blocks on the territory of its ally Belarus to attack Ukrainian targets and circumvent Kyiv's defences.
The Kremlin used Belarusian territory to launch its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and Belarus remains a steadfast ally, though longstanding President Alexander Lukashenko has vowed to commit no troops to the conflict.
"We note that the Russians are trying to bypass our defensive interceptor positions through the territory of neighbouring Belarus. This is risky for Belarus," Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram after a military staff meeting.
"It is unfortunate that Belarus is surrendering its sovereignty in favour of Russia's aggressive ambitions."
Zelenskiy said Ukrainian intelligence had observed that Belarus was deploying equipment to carry out its attacks "in Belarusian settlements near the border, including on residential buildings.
"Antennae and other equipment are located on the roofs of ordinary five-storey apartment buildings, which help guide 'Shaheds' (Russian drones) to targets in our western regions. This is an absolute disregard for human lives, and it is important that Minsk stops playing with this."
The Russian and Belarusian defence ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Zelenskiy said the staff meeting also discussed ways of financing interceptor drones, which officials in Kyiv see as the best economically viable means of tackling Russian drone attacks, which have grown in intensity in recent months.
The president said the Ukrainian military's general staff had been charged with working out changes to strategy in fending off air attacks "to defend infrastructure and frontline positions."
Lukashenko this month said Russia's Oreshnik ballistic missile system, described by Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin as impossible to intercept, had been deployed to Belarus and entered active combat duty.
An assessment by two U.S. researchers, reported by Reuters on Friday, said Moscow was likely stationing the nuclear-capable hypersonic Oreshnik at a former air base in eastern Belarus, a development that could bolster Russia’s ability to deliver missiles across Europe.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Oleksandr KozhukharEditing by Nick Zieminski)
A central bank is a national institution that manages a country's currency, money supply, and interest rates. It oversees the banking system and aims to maintain financial stability.
Inflation is the rate at which the general level of prices for goods and services rises, eroding purchasing power. Central banks attempt to limit inflation to keep the economy stable.
A financial institution is a company that provides financial services, such as banks, credit unions, insurance companies, and investment firms, facilitating transactions and managing money.
Risk management involves identifying, assessing, and prioritizing risks followed by coordinated efforts to minimize, monitor, and control the probability or impact of unfortunate events.
Investment refers to the allocation of resources, usually money, in order to generate income or profit. This can include purchasing stocks, bonds, real estate, or other assets.
Explore more articles in the Headlines category
