Belarus preparing to join Russian invasion of Ukraine, U.S. official says

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Belarus is preparing to send soldiers into Ukraine in support of the Russian invasion in a deployment that could begin as soon as Monday, a U.S. administration official said Sunday evening.

“It’s very clear Minsk is now an extension of the Kremlin,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive security development.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and he has allowed Russian troops to assemble in Belarus and conduct large-scale military drills there. If Belarus joins the Russian invasion, it would significantly complicate proposed talks between Russia and Ukraine, which the two sides had planned to hold at the Ukrainian border with Belarus.

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Russian forces pushed into Kharkiv, sparking a battle for control in Ukraine’s second-largest city, but by afternoon, Kharkiv’s governor said the city remained in government control.

British oil giant BP said it will “exit” its 20 percent stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, in one of the biggest signs yet of the Western business world cutting ties over the Kremlin’s actions.

More than 350 civilians have been killed, including 14 children, Ukrainian officials said Sunday. According to a U.N. refugee agency, 400,000 people have fled Ukraine after several days of fighting.

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