In the middle of last year, the Russians deployed their own mobile signal amplifiers in Belarus. At the same time, they used repeaters of the Belarusian civilian mobile network BTS, thus creating a complete information highway for Russian drone operators.
“This increased the ability of the Russian army to carry out strikes in our northern regions from Kyiv to Volhynia. Without assistance from Belarus, the Russians would not be able to carry out some attacks, especially on energy facilities and railway infrastructure,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post announcing sanctions on Belarus.
He also added that he works for the Russian armed forces at 3,000 Belarusian enterprises that supply key components for weapons.
Ukrainian hackers from the Ukrainian analytical-cyber center Féniks and volunteers from InformNapalm took part in uncovering the repeater system.
Already in September 2025, when analyzing the chats of Russian drone operators, it became clear that Russia was using cell towers of the Belarusian civil mobile network to guide drones. By the way individual towers in Belarus transmitted the signal, it was possible to extend the range of the signal for guidance and control of drones.
Hackers and volunteers from InformNapalm worked together to monitor suspicious accounts for half a year 24 hours a day, immediately passing the data to the Ukrainian armed forces so that the military could find means against this threat.
The observation also revealed that the Russians have built their own BTS stations in Belarus for signal propagation. Or that the drones that flew over Poland on the night of September 9 to 10 were also controlled thanks to the transmission of signals via Belarusian stations. The nets were used to guide the improved Geraň 2 series B drones.
According to hackers, drone penetrations into the airspace of NATO countries were intended to test the possibility of possible attacks on supply routes from Poland to Ukraine, which would limit the amount of arms supplies from the West to Ukraine, which is defending itself against Russian aggression.
Zelenskyj said that he intends to turn to Western allies to help him enforce major sanctions on Belarusian companies.
