Russia deploying Oreshnik missile in Belarus to 'draw country into war,' Zelensky warns
Belarus already "fully or partially" hosts Russia's Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile, President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv on Feb. 6, warning that Moscow is trying to draw Minsk deeper into its full-scale war against Ukraine.
Zelensky said Russia has completed "preparatory, technical work" related to the Oreshnik missile on Belarusian territory, describing the move as a major escalation risk.
"One use of 'Oreshnik' is that you have been drawn into the war," he said. "If Russia manages to draw another country, Belarus, fully into this war, it will be a great tragedy."
The Oreshnik is an intermediate-range ballistic missile believed to be a modified version of the Rubezh surface-to-surface missile, itself derived from Soviet-era ballistic missile designs.
Russia first used an Oreshnik against Ukraine in November 2024, striking the city of Dnipro. Most recently, the weapon was deployed in an attack on western Lviv Oblast on Jan. 9.
Zelensky addressed Belarus's broader role in Russia's war, including its involvement in attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. He said Moscow has established "air corridors" over Belarus that Russian strike drones use, supported by technical equipment, including antennas.
"We have done everything to ensure the antennas do not work, and we will make sure that 'Oreshnik' does not even start operating," Zelensky said, calling the missile a direct threat to Ukraine and saying that Kyiv would use all available means to prevent its deployment.
On political engagement with the Belarusian opposition in exile, Zelensky underscored the importance of Belarusian voices speaking out internationally.
He noted his first bilateral meeting with exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Jan. 25 in Vilnius, saying he hopes she and other representatives will inform European countries that Belarus is being drawn into the war.
Belarus, ruled by dictator Alexander Lukashenko since 1994, remains one of Russia's closest allies and has provided political and military support to Moscow since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine.
