The State Secretary of the Security Council of Belarus, Alexander Volfovich, advised Belarusian citizens to avoid traveling to Russia due to security risks.
The statement followed reports in Russian media claiming that a drone struck a passenger bus traveling from Minsk to Anapa while it was in Russia’s Bryansk region.
JOIN US ON TELEGRAM
Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.
According to the Belarusian state news agency BELTA, Volfovich urged citizens to heed previous warnings from the government regarding travel to Russian border areas.
“We warned you, the president has repeatedly spoken out and said: dear Belarusians, refrain from traveling to Russia today, especially to the border regions,” Volfovich stated. “Drones fall there every day, such bad incidents happen. We did not close the border, it is everyone’s decision whether to go or not.”
Volfovich added that citizens traveling to Russia expose themselves and their families to significant danger, stating that safety cannot be guaranteed during the ongoing military conflict.
Belarusian state television channel ONT initially broadcast a quote from Volfovich suggesting the bus was hit randomly, but the quote was later removed. The independent Belarusian portal Zerkalo noted a discrepancy between the statements from Minsk and Moscow, pointing out that Russian Ambassador Boris Gryzlov had previously accused Ukraine of a “planned attack” on the vehicle.
Ukraine denies involvement
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine denied any involvement in the incident involving the bus in the Bryansk region. In a statement to Interfax-Ukraine, Major Andriy Kovalyov, spokesman for the General Staff, characterized the Russian claims as a deliberate provocation.
Crimea Grid Ablaze: Overnight Blasts Ignite Key Power Substations
Kovalyov stated that the accusation was an attempt by the Russian military-political leadership to distract the international community from recent Russian strikes on residential areas in Kyiv.
“The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine officially states that the Defense Forces of Ukraine did not launch any strikes on the specified civilian transport, and all accusations by the aggressor country are absolutely false and fabricated,” Kovalyov said.
Border fortifications and tensions
The diplomatic exchanges occur amid ongoing efforts by Ukraine to fortify its northern border with Belarus. The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine has been constructing layered defense lines in the Chernihiv region since 2022.
The fortifications include anti-tank ditches, concrete barriers known as “dragon’s teeth,” and extensive networks of razor wire. A local border post commander, identified by the callsign “Nissan,” stated that the volume of engineering infrastructure has increased by approximately 500% since the initial months following the de-occupation of the area in 2022.
Ukrainian military officials report no current signs of strike groups forming in Belarus. However, both sides maintain active surveillance along the border.
In a related development, Yurii Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraine’s Air Force, reported that relay stations located in Belarus, which Russia used to coordinate Shahed drone strikes, have ceased operations. The shutdown followed a statement from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky regarding the presence of such equipment on Belarusian territory.
Meanwhile, Belarusian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Sekreta recently stated that Minsk would respond with “full available capabilities” if its border is crossed without permission, describing the frontier as a “red line.”
You can also highlight the text and press Ctrl + Enter
