RUSSIA is trying to drag Belarus further into its Ukraine invasion as it runs out of missiles and men.
Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky fears tyrant Vladimir Putin is planning a “provocation” to give his ally a reason to join in.
ReutersVladimir Putin is trying to drag Belarus and President Aleksander Lukashenko further into its invasion of Ukraine[/caption]
ReutersPutin has unleashed a barrage of 100 missiles and drone attacks after his bridge to Crimea was blown up on Saturday[/caption]
Train-loads of Russian troops are thought to have entered Belarus after its President Aleksander Lukashenko ordered joint “combat readiness” drills.
Putin’s soldiers used Belarus — which sits north of Ukraine — to mount a botched assault on Kyiv in February. Its air forces also uses Belarus to launch missile attacks.
Mr Zelensky told a virtual meeting of G7 leaders yesterday: “Russia is trying to directly draw Belarus into this war, playing a provocation that we are allegedly preparing an attack on this country.”
The alert came as a wave of Russian revenge strikes appeared to peter out.
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Putin unleashed a barrage of 100 missiles and drone attacks after his bridge to Crimea was blown up on Saturday.
But yesterday’s onslaught was smaller, with at least a dozen jerry-rigged anti-aircraft missiles repurposed for ground attack.
Western intelligence sources claimed Russia was struggling to restock its missiles due to sanctions on hi-tech parts.
UK spy chief Sir Jeremy Fleming said: “We know Russia is running low on its conventional munitions — and its commanders know that.”
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PM Liz Truss joined G7 allies in condemning the Russian strikes in the “strongest possible terms”.
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Putin has threatened to unleash nukes but western intelligence sources said there were no signs yet they were being readied.
Sir Jeremy added: “I would like to think that, with our allies, we would have a good chance of spotting it.”
