Ukraine is preparing for another possible Russian attack from the north, Major General Andrii Kovalchuk, head of Southern Operational Command, told Sky News.
Kovalchuk said Ukraine’s forces would need more military support to be ready to combat Russians, adding that the heaviest fighting might still be ahead.
"We are considering a possible offensive from Belarus at the end of February, maybe later," Major General Kovalchuk said. "It will no longer be the case that they will simply walk in, as was the case on Feb. 24," he said.
Kovalchuk's comments echo other similar reports by Ukraine's military leadership.
On Dec. 15, Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi told the Economist that Russia is preparing a new attack on Ukraine “as soon as January, but more likely in the spring.” He added that Russians might again attempt to attack Kyiv. Russians failed to sack Kyiv in February-March 2022.
Russia sent 12,000 mobilized troops to Belarus as of Nov. 25, according to the Ukrainian military’s National Resistance Center.
Russia also deployed military equipment, including supersonic aircraft, to Belarus.
As Belarus continued to engage in covert mobilization, Minsk conducted "verification of the military conscripts."
The Institute for the Study of War noted on Dec. 13 that Belarus is unlikely to invade Ukraine because of the risk of renewed domestic unrest if its security system is weakened by involvement in a costly war against Ukraine.
(Updated: )
