Zelensky warns Belarus of 'consequences' over possible deeper involvement in war

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on May 21 that Kyiv is prepared to take "preventive" measures against Russia and the Belarusian leadership over potential military threats to northern Ukraine.

Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko's regime "must understand there will be consequences if there is aggression against Ukraine, against our people," Zelensky said, reiterating warnings about Moscow attempting to draw Minsk deeper into the war.

The news comes amid growing concerns in Kyiv that Russia could seek to open a new front against Kyiv or Chernihiv Oblast while involving Belarus, Moscow's close ally and Ukraine's northern neighbor.

The warnings come as Belarus holds joint nuclear exercises with Russia.

Zelensky on May 21 visited the city of Slavutych near the Belarusian border, saying Ukraine would strengthen local defenses to face a potential threat from Belarus or Russia's Bryansk Oblast.

Lukashenko denied any plans to involve his country in the war — unless "aggression is committed against (Belarusian) territory" — and instead proposed a meeting with Zelensky.

"If (Zelensky) wants to discuss something, seek advice, or anything else, please do. We are open to it," Lukashenko said, according to the Belarusian state news agency Belta.

"I am ready to meet with him anywhere — in Ukraine, in Belarus — and discuss the problems of Belarusian-Ukrainian relations."

Kyiv has dismissed the proposal.

"Since 2022, it has been obvious to everyone that this man's words mean nothing, and we should pay attention to his actions," Zelensky's advisor Dmytro Lytvyn told journalists.

Zelensky and Lukashenko last met in October 2019 at the Second Regional Forum in Zhytomyr, Ukraine, less than three years before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.

Since then, Belarus has supported Russia's military operations, allowing Russian forces to use its territory as a staging ground for the 2022 Kyiv offensive. Lukashenko's regime has faced massive Western sanctions in response.

However, more recently, Lukashenko pursued a more constructive engagement with the U.S. under the Trump administration, releasing political prisoners in exchange for sanctions relief.

Lithuania, Belarus's EU neighbor, suggested it is facing U.S. pressure to again allow Belarus to use its main port for fertilizer exports, which are currently subject to European sanctions.

The news prompted concern in Kyiv, where Lytvyn said that easing sanctions is unlikely to bring peace closer and could instead encourage Russian President Vladimir Putin to expect sanctions relief as well.