Ukraine beefs up along Belarus border — in case Putin wants a do-over
It's a psychops battle on the border. Ukraine this week posted this video, a show of force, its troops on training exercises near Belarus. Russia released this video of its fighter jets training with the Belarus Air Force. Ukraine's military says at least 10,000 Russian troops are positioned in Belarus, potentially staging for another northern invasion. Not only on Kiev, but also the supply lines that run Western weapons into Ukraine from Poland. This time a year ago, a massive Russian military buildup in Belarus presaged Putin's February 24th invasion and the Russian attack aimed at taking the capital. I'm standing on Ukraine's northern border with Belarus and we're told that there are Belarusian troops on the other side of this river that can see us right now.
On February 24th, Ukraine's military blew up this bridge over the Nipro River and that denied Russian tanks a direct route to get to central Kiev. That forced the Russians to attempt a run on Kiev from the east through the city's suburbs where they inflicted some of the worst atrocities of the war. But the invasion stalled and Ukrainian fighters destroyed Russian tanks, forcing a retreat. As the anniversary approaches, Ukraine is building up its defenses in the north. In the dense forests that are along the border with Belarus, Ukraine's military and border guard service have built this vast network of trenches. Now none of this existed a year ago when the Russians first invaded. They're hoping that should the Russians want a do-over and try to come through here, that this time they'll be better prepared.
Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers are dug in, living in these trenches on high alert. An officer with the border guard service who goes by Serh, he says, We've not ruled out there will be an attack. On February 24th, we did not expect an invasion, so now we're trained to be ready. Ready and waiting in brutal, sub-freezing conditions. To avoid hypothermia, we alternate every two hours, he says, patrolling in the trenches and then warming up by the fire. I don't see tanks or artillery and other types of equipment that you would need to protect Ukraine if there were another invasion that came from Belarus. We have everything, but it's hidden, says Serh.
Along the 6000-mile border, Ukrainian forces used drones as an early warning system. We continuously monitor the enemy from the ground and observe troop movements. If they're moving, how many troops and what they're doing, says this Ukrainian intelligence officer. The enemy is also monitoring our activity. The enemy is constantly monitoring our guard changes, trying to find out our positions and strong points. To be sure, it appears Putin prioritizes the taking of territory in the eastern Donbas region, but military analysts say that forcing Ukraine's outmanned and outgunned forces to divert resources to the northern border could help Russia achieve victories to mark their invasions one year anniversary chance. Jason, it just seems like this punishing winter, we saw you in the trenches, they're on high alert, sub-freezing temps.
And now we learn today that Starlink admitted it is throttling Ukraine's use of technology to guide its drones, which the country says it's relying on. How real is that threat of a new offensive from Russia? Well, it seems very real. Officials here in Kyiv estimate Russia's forces now total more than 300,000. Think about it, that's more than Putin amassed ahead of the invasion a year ago. That said, the Pentagon assesses that most of these troops are poorly trained, they're ill-equipped, and Ukrainian intelligence is saying that they expect the Kremlin to draft even more people as Russia tries to really stretch Ukrainian forces across a growing battlefront. Even here in the capital where it's been relatively quiet of late, people are bracing for what Putin may have planned, Hans. It's such a dichotomy, some of this is high-tech and some of it is just manpower and trying to wear people out.
In the meantime, we did get word that President Zelensky is issuing new warnings to a neighbor. Oh, that's right. He told the European Union today that he himself called the president of Maldova to inform her that Ukrainian intelligence had intercepted what he described as a detailed Russian plan to destroy Maldovan democracy and to establish Russian control over that country. And if he managed to do so, that would put Russia in close range of western Ukraine and the supply routes for all the NATO weapons that are coming in. And as we've talked about, there are tanks that are on the way. So it's understandable why Russia would want to have control over that country, Hans.
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