Maria Zakharova, a spokesman for Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated today that Russia finds it unacceptable that Belarus is demanding that Ukraine remove its forces from the shared border.Belarus was urged to remove a sizable portion of its armed soldiers and equipment stationed at the shared border by Ukraine two days ago.The Belarusian military forces are asked to “cease hostile actions” and remove their troops from the border, according to a statement released by the Ukrainian ministry.

There are tanks, guns, anti-aircraft systems, and other engineering tools in the Gomel region, which is close to Ukraine’s northern border. According to the statement, Ukraine “has never conducted hostile activities against theBelarusian people.”

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned Belarus of “tragic mistakes” under pressure from Moscow.On August 18, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko declared that about one-third of Ukraine’s armed forces were stationed along the whole border, with over 100,000 troops stationed on the Belarusian side.

Last Monday, Belarus announced that it has dispatched armoured vehicles, air defence soldiers, and aircraft to the Ukrainian border.