Russia 'withdraws all troops from Belarus' as grueling battlefield losses pile up

Russia appears to have withdrawn all of its troops from Belarus – and no new soldiers have been brought in, according to a Ukrainian official.

The precise reason for the complete withdrawal is unclear, though it coincides with new figures indicating Vladimir Putin’s military has lost 300,000 soldiers since waging war on Ukraine more than 18 months ago.

Andriy Demchenko, the spokesperson of Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service, told local media “all its units from the territory of Belarus” have left “as part of a rotation”.

However, these have yet to be replaced, he said, according to the Kyiv Independent.