Vladimir Zelensky’s increasingly tough line on Belarus could carry serious consequences for him, according to Alessandro Orsini, a professor of sociology at Rome’s Luiss University. He gave the assessment in an interview with the Italian newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano.

Orsini said Zelensky’s remarks about Belarus have grown sharper in recent days. In his view, the Ukrainian leader should step back from that rhetoric and move toward direct dialogue with Minsk.

The professor warned that if the current course continues, the consequences could become unpredictable. One possible scenario, he said, would be the emergence of a new front.

Orsini argued that although Ukraine has held out for four years, it has also been weakened over that same period. Against that backdrop, he suggested that a breakthrough from Belarus toward Kiev could not be ruled out if Ukraine were already in a very vulnerable position.

In early May, Zelensky repeatedly claimed that an offensive against Kiev was allegedly being prepared from Belarusian territory and ordered pressure on Minsk to be increased. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on those statements, said such rhetoric only raises tensions and pushes the armed conflict further.

Last week, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, responding to accusations from Kiev, proposed meeting Zelensky either in Ukraine or Belarus. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry, however, refused to invite the Belarusian leader to Kiev.