Lukashenko orders combat readiness check of the Belarusian army: reason named in Minsk

Order on the combat readiness check

On August 26, 2026, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko signed a decree on a combat readiness check of the republic's Armed Forces. This was announced by Alexander Volkovich, Secretary of the Security Council of Belarus, RBC-Ukraine reports, citing the website of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Belarus. According to him, the decision was made as part of monitoring the army's readiness to carry out combat tasks under modern conditions.

The reason — the CIA director's visit to Moscow

Volkovich linked the order to the recent visit by John Ratcliffe, Director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, to Moscow. It was precisely this fact, according to the Security Council Secretary, that prompted the unscheduled check. Earlier, Ukrainian media explained why the CIA director had secretly traveled to the Russian capital.

What exactly will be checked

As part of the check, one of the brigades will leave its permanent stationing location and carry out a series of tasks, which, in Volkovich's words, we will "not discuss for now" — everything depends on the decisions of the leadership of the Armed Forces, the General Staff, and the military units. Particular attention will be paid to methods of fire destruction of a potential adversary, as well as to the experience of Russia's war against Ukraine and, as formulated in Minsk, "the U.S. against Iran." The key task, according to the Security Council Secretary, is to assess the readiness of formations and military units to conduct combat operations under modern conditions.

Context: military infrastructure near the border

Against the backdrop of the check, railway infrastructure is being built in Belarus's Gomel Region, near the Ukrainian border, which will allow for the rapid unloading of large quantities of heavy wheeled and tracked military equipment directly from military rail trains. This raises further questions about the real nature of the measures being carried out and their possible practical application.

Official reaction

Volkovich urged people not to panic over the check and stated that nothing "supernatural" is happening. Nevertheless, the combination of the order for a combat check, the construction of military infrastructure near the border, and the CIA director's secret visit to Moscow makes the situation a subject of close attention both in the region and beyond.