The Kremlin seeks to use the State of the Union to establish Russian control over Belarus.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) says that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to put pressure on self-proclaimed Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to achieve concessions on the integration of the two countries during a visit to Minsk, as well as created the conditions for a new attack on Ukraine.
It is noted that the Kremlin intends to use the Union State to establish Russian control over Belarus.
At the same time, Lukashenko is already creating information conditions to reject the demands of Russian integration, as he has done for decades.
As ISW added, Lukashenko has so far largely resisted Russia’s increased demands for integration and refused to deploy Belarusian forces to participate in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The visit to Minsk could indicate that Putin is trying to create the conditions for a renewed offensive in Ukraine, military analysts say.
ISW assesses a Russian invasion of Ukraine from Belarus as low, but possible.
It is unlikely that Belarusian forces would invade Ukraine without a Russian strike force. It is far from obvious that Lukashenka will send Belarusian troops to fight in Ukraine even alongside Russian troops.
However, the meeting between Putin and Lukashenko, at the very least, will contribute to a separate Russian information operation aimed at destroying the will of Ukraine and the willingness of the West to support Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War is ending.
It was noted that this meeting will strengthen Russia’s information operation aimed at convincing Ukrainians and Westerners that Russia can attack Ukraine from Belarus. The Russian strikes in Kyiv, the continued deployment of troops in Belarus and the continued bellicose rhetoric are part of this information operation.
It will be remembered that Putin has scheduled a visit to the capital of Belarus on December 19.
Yesterday, on December 16, the head of the Kremlin called the Security Council to discuss with its permanent members “relations with neighbors in certain areas.”
news Correspondent.net on Telegram. Subscribe to our channel Athletistic
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.