Lavrov threatens “full spectrum of measures” to defend Belarus after Zelensky’s ultimatum

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Moscow is prepared to employ “the full spectrum of measures” under its security treaty with Belarus — in response to Vladimir Zelensky’s threat to strike drone guidance infrastructure on Belarusian territory.

On June 19, Zelensky issued an ultimatum, accusing Belarus of deploying four signal relay stations in the Gomel and Brest regions that are used to guide Russian Shahed-type drones toward Ukrainian cities.

“I am giving one week for this to be removed; otherwise we will do it ourselves,” Zelensky said.

Lavrov, speaking at a round table on the Ukrainian conflict, framed the demand as an attempt to expand the war. He said it “is clearly aimed at directly drawing Belarus into the conflict and expanding the geography of hostilities,” according to the Russian news agency Interfax. Lavrov cited the security guarantee treaty between Russia and Belarus, which entered into force in March 2025.

“If necessary, we are ready to activate the full range of measures provided for by the treaty in order to ensure the security of our ally and, of course, the security of the Union State,” Lavrov said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Vladimir Putin plans to meet with Lukashenko in the near future to discuss the ultimatum.

Lukashenko himself has not publicly responded to the one-week ultimatum. As recently as June 15, he told Al Arabiya television that Ukraine had “no reason to fear Belarus” and called for a compromise to end the war. In May, he claimed that Belarus would only enter the conflict if it were attacked.

On June 22, the Belarusian opposition United Transitional Cabinet handed Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha a detailed dossier describing what the opposition considers Lukashenko’s shift to a wartime footing. The document references constitutional changes abolishing Belarus’s neutral and nuclear-free status, a fivefold increase in military spending, a doubling of contract military recruitment, and a 2024 military doctrine permitting preemptive strikes.

The standoff has prompted both sides to develop contingency plans. Ukraine’s commander of unmanned systems forces stated in May that 500 Belarusian targets had already been identified. The commander of Ukraine’s National Guard said on June 22 that a renewed Russian offensive from Belarusian territory would require at least 70,000 troops. The one-week ultimatum expires around June 26.