Macron warns Lukashenko against deeper Belarus involvement in Ukraine war

In Rare Phone Call, Macron Warns Belarus' Lukashenko Against Directly Joining Ukraine War In their first direct contact since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, French President Emmanuel Macron telephoned Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to warn him against increasing his country's engagement in the war, according to sources who spoke to AFP.   "[Macron] highlighted the risks Belarus will face if dragged into the war in Ukraine. He also called on Lukashenko to take necessary measures to improve relations between Belarus and Europe," a source told AFP. Lukashenko let Russia use Belarus as a staging area for the 2022 invasion, and has continued to let Russia launch missile and drone strikes from Belarus over the more than three years of war.  Belarus let Russia use its territory as a staging ground for the 2022 invasion of Ukraine Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Russia might be preparing to open a new front in the war, striking northern Ukraine and Kiev with heightened involvement of the Belarusian military. Zelensky's warning came after Belarus announced its participation in three days of massive nuclear drills with Russia. Russia’s Defense Ministry said the exercise involved 64,000 troops, over 200 missile launchers, more than 140 aircraft, 73 surface warships and 13 submarines, including eight armed with nuclear-tipped ICBMs. The drills focused on the “preparation and use of nuclear forces under the threat of aggression,” it said. Ukraine's Border Guard Service, however, said they haven't observed signs of Russian or Belarusian troops massing on the frontier -- yet. "If we talk about the line of our border, then, fortunately, as of this moment, we do not record any movement of equipment, weapons, or personnel in the immediate vicinity of our border or such accumulation," said a spokesman. He did claim that intelligence shows Putin has been increasing pressure on Lukashenko to join the war.   Amid the mounting tension, Lukashenko last week offered his availability for a meeting with Zelensky. "If (Zelensky) wants to discuss something, seek advice, or anything else, please do. We are open to it," Lukashenka said. "I am ready to meet with him anywhere - in Ukraine, in Belarus - and discuss the problems of Belarusian-Ukrainian relations." Lukashenko also dismissed the idea that Belarus would directly join Russia's war, saying that wouldn't happen unless "aggression is committed against (Belarusian) territory." 🇺🇦🇷🇺 FIRST TIME RECORDED: Up-close sounds of Russian Oreshnik IRBM warheads falling down … eerie pic.twitter.com/ZfEblDeqy1 — Lord Bebo (@MyLordBebo) May 24, 2026 Russia's Belarus-based arsenal includes the Oreshnik -- Russia's nuclear-capable, hypersonic, intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM). Over Saturday night, Russia made rare use of the cutting-edge Oreshnik missiles in a spectacular assault on Kiev and nearby territory. The attack made good on Putin's vow to avenge a Ukrainian strike that hit a secondary-school dormitory in the Russian-controlled Luhansk oblast, killing at least 18 people. Belarus announced the deployment of Oreshniks on its territory in late December.    Macron initiated Sunday's call. Their last phone conversation came on Feb 26, 2022, just two days after the Russian army launched its so-called "special military operation" aimed at cleaving Ukraine's eastern Donbas region from the country.    Tyler Durden Mon, 05/25/2026 - 08:35

Russia’s deadly attack condemned across Europe; Macron warns Belarusian leader Lukashenko to stay out of the war, source says. What we know on day 1,552Russia’s latest attacks against Ukraine, which Volodymyr Zelenskyy said involved an Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile, showed “reckless nuclear-brinkmanship”, the EU’s foreign policy chief said. “Russia hit a dead-end on the battlefield, so it terrorizes Ukraine with deliberate strikes on city centres. These are abhorrent acts of terror meant to kill as many civilians as possible,” Kaja Kallas wrote on X. “Moscow reportedly using Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missiles – systems designed to carry nuclear warheads – is a political scare tactic and reckless nuclear brinkmanship,” Kallas said.Russia has now used its powerful hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile three times in strikes on Ukraine, writes Jennifer Rankin. The massive attack on Kyiv and its surrounding region killed at least four people and injured about 100. “They are genuinely deranged,” Zelenskyy said on Telegram, describing Moscow’s latest strikes, which he said had hit Kyiv the hardest.The head of the World Health Organization said its offices in Kyiv had been damaged by debris from Russian strikes, “damaging windows on the third floor”. “This building is home to many UN agencies besides WHO. No one got injured,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X.The German foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, joined Macron in condemning the latest Russian attacks and described the use of an Oreshnik ballistic missile as “another escalation”. The UK foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, said: “Moscow’s escalating assault on Ukrainian civilians betrays its weakness.” Cooper described scenes from Kyiv as “awful”.Emmanuel Macron has warned the Belarusian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, a key Russian ally, against any involvement in Moscow’s war against Ukraine, a source close to the French president said. The warning was made during the first reported phone call between the two leaders since the early days of Russia’s invasion in February 2022, partly launched from Belarusian territory. Macron “stressed the risks for Belarus of allowing itself to be drawn into Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine”, the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. “He also urged Alexander Lukashenko to take the necessary steps to improve relations between Belarus and Europe,” the source added, according to Agence France-Presse. Continue reading...