The Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev, does not exclude the possibility of the Russians organising provocations and sabotage on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, Military Media Center stated.
"The situation on the border with Belarus is under our full control. No drastic changes are expected. Now, the Russian ground component has been fully withdrawn from Belarus and is part of the reserve of the joint group of Russian troops; some parts of it are conducting an offensive in the Kupyansk/Lyman direction," Nayev said.
He noted that, at the same time, a number of joint CSTO trainings (Echelon, Poisk, Vzaimodeystviye) are scheduled to take place in Belarus in September, which could be used to legitimise the increasing military presence.
According to him, as Russia has not achieved its strategic goals, it is possible that in the future they will look for new reasons to resume active operations from the northern direction. Thus, the organisation of provocations and sabotage on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border is not excluded.
At the same time, the general said that there are currently no signs of the formation of strike groups in the North area of the Joint Forces Operation. The troops of the Belarusian Armed Forces and the West cover group are mostly ready for defensive actions on its own territory.
However, as the Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine noted, the risk of sabotage and reconnaissance forces being used from the territory of Belarus cannot be excluded, so actions to improve counter-sabotage and defence capabilities are already being taken.
The Ukrainian Defence Forces continue to conduct offensive operations in the Bakhmut and Melitopol directions. In the Novodanylivka-Verbove direction, they succeed, gain foothold on their positions, fire on the identified enemy targets with artillery, and carry out counter-battery actions.