Troop trains into Belarus and a warning to the G7
A look back at the Belarus troop movements and Volodymyr Zelenskyy's warning to G7 nations, as reported on 11 October 2022.
What did Kyiv believe was coming from the north on 11 October 2022? As reported at the time, thousands of Russian troops were entering Belarus by the trainload, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned G7 nations that Russia was planning another offensive against Kyiv, with direct Belarusian involvement.
The troop movements came a day after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko accused Ukraine of planning to launch an attack on his country. That accusation, made on 10 October, preceded the arrival of the Russian forces.
The backdrop
The warning came amid a sharp escalation in rhetoric. On 9 October 2022, Russian president Vladimir Putin formally accused Ukraine, and specifically the Security Service of Ukraine, of being behind the explosion on the Crimean Bridge. The blast killed three people and partially destroyed part of the bridge. Putin described it as an act of terrorism.
Taken together, the reports from those days showed an accusation over the bridge, a claim from Minsk about a supposed Ukrainian attack, and a Ukrainian warning to the G7 about Belarus's role.
