Zelenskyy gives Lukashenka one week to remove drone relay equipment
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued a blunt one-week ultimatum to Belarusian leader Aliaksandr Lukashenka on Friday, warning that Ukraine will destroy drone-guidance relay equipment stationed along their shared border if Minsk fails to act. The warning came during a media briefing in Kyiv and marked one of the sharpest direct threats Zelenskyy has made toward Belarus since the full-scale Russian invasion began in February 2022.
What Zelenskyy actually said
Speaking to reporters, Zelenskyy didn’t mince words. He said Kyiv has identified multiple relay stations near the border that Russian forces have been using to guide drone strikes deeper into Ukrainian territory. He gave Lukashenka seven days to dismantle the equipment or face Ukrainian action to take it down. That’s an unusually specific timeline, and it signals Kyiv’s growing impatience with what officials describe as Belarus’s active role in facilitating Russian attacks.
A senior Ukrainian defense official, speaking on background, confirmed that at least three relay positions have been tracked along the northern border region over the past several weeks.
Why this matters now
Belarus has walked a careful line since 2022, allowing Russian troops to use its territory for the initial assault on Kyiv but stopping short of formally entering the war itself. But that distinction has been wearing thin. Ukrainian officials have long argued that Minsk is doing far more than sitting on the sidelines. The drone relay issue, they say, is proof.
Shahed-series drones launched from Russian territory have increasingly followed flight paths that skirt Belarusian airspace or rely on signal infrastructure just across the border. Kyiv says the relay equipment extends the operational range and precision of those strikes. It’s not a passive contribution — it’s an active one, according to Ukrainian intelligence assessments.
Lukashenka hasn’t responded publicly
As of Friday evening, there was no official response from Minsk. Lukashenka has in the past dismissed Ukrainian accusations as propaganda, and Belarusian state media has not covered the ultimatum. That silence may itself be telling.
Still, the pressure is real.
If Kyiv follows through, striking targets on or near Belarusian soil would be an escalation with unpredictable consequences. Belarus is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Russian-led military alliance, though what obligations that would trigger in practice remains unclear. NATO’s eastern flank — Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia all share borders with Belarus — would be watching closely.
What comes next
The seven-day clock is now running. Zelenskyy has framed this as a straightforward security issue, not a political provocation. But it won’t be read that way in Moscow or Minsk. Ukrainian forces have demonstrated the capability and willingness to strike targets well beyond their own borders in recent months, so the threat carries weight.
Whether Lukashenka blinks, stalls, or simply ignores the deadline could determine how dramatically Ukraine’s northern front shifts before the week is out.
