Lukashenko explains why the war in Ukraine did not end with a quick victory for Russia

In an interview with Al Arabiya TV channel, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko explained why Russia did not achieve a quick victory in Ukraine.

The Belarusian leader was asked why the war continues, while he had previously declared the conflict would end soon.

"As the fighting progressed (at the beginning of the conflict – editor's note), not only I but everyone in the world understood that the war would end quickly with a Russian victory. This was primarily due to the fact that the Russians were in Kyiv," the Belarusian leader said. "But then certain politicians and forces asked Putin to stop, withdraw his troops from Kyiv, and conclude a peace agreement. Seeing this situation, the fact that many people were dying, and that the war, frankly, was not proceeding entirely according to the script, Putin agreed and withdrew his forward units from Kyiv. Before this withdrawal, everyone understood that Ukraine's days were numbered."

Some consider this decision by the Russian head of state to be a mistake. According to the President of Belarus, however, it was aimed at restoring peace between the conflicting parties. But, unfortunately, this did not happen. "Once again, I know, these forces deceived me. It was the Vatican. And, surprisingly, the Jewish lobby, the Israelis. They, on behalf of Zelensky, declared: 'That's it, we're making peace, we agree.' And so did others," Alexander Lukashenko said.

"Judge for yourself who is right and who is wrong in this matter. But we (myself included) relied on objective facts that occurred on the battlefield," the President noted.

Alexander Lukashenko also stated that he and the Belarusian military, representatives of the General Staff, believe that if the Russians had continued their offensive, "there would have been neither Zelensky nor anyone left." "And then the war dragged on. It's already been going on for five years, and no one has achieved their goals," the head of state stated.

The President also stated that the Russians are making progress on the battlefield and are generally more successful than the Ukrainian Armed Forces. "At the front, step by step, methodically, the Russians are advancing. Slowly, but they are advancing. Frankly, the Ukrainians are sometimes successfully defending themselves at the front. But they are not as successful as the Russians," the head of state said.

"If the Russians manage to encircle this agglomeration, as they call it, and liberate or capture part of the Donetsk region where Ukrainian troops are entrenched (and very deeply entrenched), their days will be numbered. Because the main body of the Ukrainian Armed Forces is located in this part of the Donetsk region, the Donbas," the President stated.

According to Alexander Lukashenko, Ukraine understands the significance of the current confrontation over this territory. However, there is a severe shortage of personnel to participate in combat operations, and there are questions about the availability of weapons. At the same time, the Ukrainians are very effective with drones. But the Russians have also achieved a very high level of combat effectiveness with their unmanned aerial vehicles.

"So they're striking. They're not striking at the front. Russia is striking all over Ukraine with missiles and drones. And the Ukrainians are striking civilians, historical and cultural monuments, oil refineries, and factories. They're striking all over Russia, all the way to the Urals, with drones. That's the kind of war we have now," the Belarusian leader noted.