Belarusian Relay Stations Helped Russia Strike Western Ukraine

New Russian drone strikes on the Rivne, Volyn, and Lviv regions were carried out using relay stations located in Belarus.

Andrii Demchenko, spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, reported this on the United News telethon.

“All of this was also effectively supported from the territory of Belarus. The aerial assets launched by Russia received signal input through relay stations located in the country,” Demchenko said.

The spokesperson added that border guards have not observed any buildup of Russian strike forces near the Ukrainian border in Belarus, but the threat from that direction remains overall.

Back in the second half of 2025, Russia deployed a system of relay stations in Belarus to control drones.

The Russians would not have carried out some of the strikes, including those targeting energy infrastructure and railways in Ukrainian regions, without such assistance from Belarus.

In June 2026, Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Belarus switched off Russian relay stations used for Shahed drones.

The statement concerned four relay stations in the Gomel and Brest regions, which Russia used to attack the key Korosten–Kovel railway line and targets in the Zhytomyr, Rivne, and Volyn regions.

These drone relay stations receive signals from a controller or another drone and relay them onward.

They help extend range and improve communication stability in areas where the direct signal is weak or obstructed.

A relay can be installed on another UAV, a ground platform, or a dedicated station.

In May, it was reported that Russia was also pressuring Alexander Lukashenko to have Belarus join operations in the Kyiv-Chernihiv direction and missions against NATO countries.