Lukashenko Vows Funds for KGB as Russian Troops Arrive for Drills

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has met with top security officials to bolster the State Security Committee (KGB), citing an “aggressive” attitude from neighboring Poland and the Baltic states. The high-level meeting coincided with the arrival of the first contingent of Russian troops for the upcoming “Zapad-2025” joint military exercises, signaling a period of heightened security focus in Minsk.

During the meeting, Lukashenko stressed that no expense should be spared for the KGB’s operational success, promising rewards for “concrete results.” However, he cautioned against increasing the agency’s numerical strength, arguing that workers are needed in the national economy. “We have no right to take people from production,” he stated, a directive that applies to the entire security apparatus.

The security discussions are underscored by significant military activity. In addition to the preparations for “Zapad-2025,” a regular biennial drill with Russia, Belarus has also launched separate exercises for its Air Force and Air Defense troops. Lukashenko recently linked this heightened military posture to a drone incident in Minsk, which he claimed carried explosives.

The maneuvers have put the region on edge. In response, neighboring Lithuania announced it would increase its vigilance and reactivated a civilian monitoring platform for citizens to report suspicious activity. This move comes despite earlier Belarusian assurances that the exercises would be scaled down to “lower the temperature in the region.”

Meanwhile, the Belarusian opposition’s militant wing appears to be fracturing. The Poland-based paramilitary organization “Paspalitae Rushenne,” formed with the backing of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s government-in-exile, has announced its dissolution due to internal conflicts. This follows an earlier crisis within the better-known Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment.

Sergey Bulba, the leader of the dissolved group, confirmed they were undergoing a “deep restructuring.” He candidly noted that the 2020 protest wave had attracted people who “hoped for a redistribution of power, that streets and avenues would be named after them, or at the very least that they would be awarded orders and medals,” hinting at a crisis of motivation within their ranks.