Belarus starts recalling men once ruled ‘unfit in peacetime’ for new military medical exams

Belarusian authorities have started summoning some men liable for military service and classified as “unfit in peacetime” for new medical examinations, including men who have already turned 27. Lawyers from a group that helps draftees told the news outlet Zerkalo.

The lawyers said that men given this designation are considered only partly fit for service, and only in wartime. They are excused from the draft and placed in the reserves, but at least once every three years they are required to undergo another medical examination. That requirement ends when a man turns 27.

However, one of the lawyers said, a man classified as “unfit in peacetime” who is re-examined after turning 27 — for whatever reason — and found fit for service could be summoned for training exercises. A colleague said the practice is illegal.

The lawyers said they were already aware of several such cases, though they did not give an exact number. Before the spring of 2026, they had never encountered the practice, and they had no information about what became of the men who agreed to be re-examined.

In April 2026, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said military activity in Belarus had increased, citing Ukrainian intelligence. Zelensky suggested that Russia wanted to “try once again to drag Belarus into its war.” The Wall Street Journal reported that Moscow had mounted a pressure campaign against Minsk.

Earlier in June, Zelensky had demanded that Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko remove the signal repeaters along the border that allegedly help direct Russian strikes. A few days later, Zelensky said the repeaters had been removed. In late June, Lukashenko denied that Minsk was under such pressure and said he had recently met with Zelensky’s representatives in Minsk. On June 29, however, Ukraine again detected the repeaters in operation.

Oleksandr Syrsky, the commander in chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said on June 30 that Russia was still weighing an offensive from Belarusian territory. He expressed doubt, though, that Lukashenko would agree to it. Even so, Syrsky noted, Ukraine is taking the scenario into account.