Ukraine bolsters its northern defences amid fears Belarus is being dragged into war

A Ukrainian work team sets up extra razor wire in front of an anti-tank ditch in the forest close to the Belarusian border. Photograph: Peter Beaumont/The Guardian View image in fullscreen A Ukrainian work team sets up extra razor wire in front of an anti-tank ditch in the forest close to the Belarusian border. Photograph: Peter Beaumont/The Guardian Ukraine bolsters its northern defences amid fears Belarus is being dragged into war Kyiv is not taking any risks amid Moscow’s efforts to integrate Minsk ever more closely into its war R ussian spy drones flying into Ukraine from Belarusian airspace have sharply increased since the beginning of the year, as senior officials in Kyiv express mounting concern over Belarus’s involvement in the war. Ukraine has stepped up by reinforcing fortifications on its northern border, including anti-tank ditches, concrete “dragons’ teeth” obstacles to block armoured vehicles and new areas of barbed wire. Troops operating along the border say they have noted a jump of about 20% in Russian intelligence drones since January. The increase in drone sightings comes in parallel with reports that Russia has constructed five new drone bases near its shared border with Belarus as part of its efforts to use Minsk’s airspace to attack Ukraine. Ukrainian officials, including the president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy , have spoken of “unusual activity” on the Belarus border, amid concern that Moscow is seeking to draw its ally further into the conflict, and warnings that have been given to Minsk. The claims came as Russia and Belarus on Wednesday accused Ukraine of conducting a deadly drone strike on a bus carrying Belarusian schoolchildren while visiting the Russian region of Bryansk, an allegation that ​Ukraine’s military said was “false”. According to reports in May, Belarus has also been expanding infrastructure that could support Russian operations, including logistics routes and training grounds, as well as communications and surveillance infrastructure in support of Russian drone strikes into Ukraine, which use the Belarusian border areas as an air corridor for attack. Officials say there is no evidence that Russian forces – or the Belarusian military – are gathering in large formations in border areas for a repeat of the use of Belarusian territory to invade Ukraine, as happened during the full-scale invasion in February 2022. Instead, what concerns Ukrainian and European officials is that Moscow is attempting to integrate Minsk ever more closely into its war efforts, including through joint nuclear exercises earlier this year. Among those who have flagged up concern over Belarus’s intentions is the former Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba, who also served on the national defence and security council of Ukraine. In a recent television interview, Kuleba said that the Belarusian president, Aleksandr Lukashenko’s “actions today are different from 2022”, when he allowed his territory to be used by Russia for the invasion. “I